Papers by Daniel comboni Okello
Cogent Food & Agriculture, 2021
Abstract Pig production has a high potential for increasing household incomes of both rural and u... more Abstract Pig production has a high potential for increasing household incomes of both rural and urban smallholder farmers. However, this opportunity is constrained by the high cost of feeds and its scarcity. As such, farmers usually feed pigs on multiple feed resources within their reach. Although the diversity of pig feeds is important in overcoming the challenges, there is limited information on how this can be achieved, and the factors influencing it. Using a cross-section of 240 pig farming households, this study assessed how socio-demographic, technical and institutional factors influenced household pig feed diversity. Statistical analysis was performed at p < 0.1, p < 0.05 and p < 0.01), respectively. Results showed that marital status (p = 0.012), household size (p = 0.085), number of crop (p = 0.008) and other livestock enterprises (p = 0.055), ownership of mobile phone (p = 0.091), buying feeds (p = 0.005), and use of radio (p = 0.032) and friend as sources (p = 0.002) of agricultural information had a positive significant influence on household pig feed diversity. Additionally, age (p = 0.042), land size owned (p = 0.085) and breed [rearing local (p = 0.009) and crosses (p = 0.000) as opposed to exotic breeds] had a negative significant influence on household pig feed diversity. The study recommends that focus should be placed on improving access to farm inputs, agricultural and market information for smallholder pig farmers so as to improve pig feed diversity and subsequently enhance production and productivity. Radio and mobile phone technologies are opportunities that can support information sharing.
Preventive Veterinary Medicine, 2022
Pig production is an important farm enterprise for an increasing number of smallholder farmers du... more Pig production is an important farm enterprise for an increasing number of smallholder farmers due to its potential for improving household incomes. The sector is however faced with high burden of health issues that limit most farmers from realizing the benefits. In order to improve management of pig health for smallholder farmers, an understanding of the major health issues and factors associated with farmers' choice of the pig health management strategies are paramount. Using a cross-sectional survey of 240 smallholder pig farmers in northern Uganda, this study assessed the factors associated with the use of different pig health management practices adopted by smallholder pig farmers. Data analysis involved descriptive statistics and two different regression models. Binary Probit Regression model was used to assess factors associated with the use of a single pig health management strategy, while, Generalized Poisson Regression model was used to assess the factors associated with the number of pig health management strategies used by the farmers. Results showed that the common health issues were African Swine Fever, lice, worms and mange, while the common strategies for health management involved self-administering antibiotics, consulting veterinarians, deworming, spraying with acaricides, selling the sick pigs, treatment with local herbs, and burying dead pigs. These pig health management strategies were influenced by farmers location, experience, age, access to extension, use of information and communication technologies, and use of processed feeds. This study recommends improving farmers' access to relevant information and expanding veterinary extension services by promoting the use of radio and mobile phones in pig health management.
Background: Climate change poses a serious threat to agricultural livelihoods and food security o... more Background: Climate change poses a serious threat to agricultural livelihoods and food security of smallholder farmers in Sub Saharan Africa. Understanding long-term rainfall trends of variability and extremes at local scales and perceptions regarding long-term changes in climate variables is important in planning appropriate adaptation measures to climate change. This paper examines the perception of farmers in Apac district regarding long-term changes in climate variables and analyzes the trend of occurrence in seasonal and annual rainfall in Apac district, northern Uganda. A cross-sectional survey design was employed to collect data on perception of farmers regarding long-term changes in climate from 260 randomly selected small-holder farmers’ households across two sub-counties in Apac district by the administration of semi-structured questionnaires in February 2018. Monthly rainfall data sets from the Uganda Meteorological Authority (UMA) for the period 1980 to 2019 for the Apac...
BMC Nutrition, 2021
Background The high level of incidence of mortality attributed to non-communicable diseases such ... more Background The high level of incidence of mortality attributed to non-communicable diseases such as cancer, diabetes and hypertension being experienced in developing countries requires concerted effort on investment in strategies that can reduce the risks of development of such diseases. Fruits and vegetables (FV) contain natural bioactive compounds, and if consumed at or above 400 g per day (RDMIL) as recommended by World Health Organization (WHO) is believed to contribute to reduced risk of development of such diseases. The objective of this study was to determine in a developing country set-up, the extent to which rural and urban households conform to RDMIL, the status of nutritional attitude (NA) and knowledge (NK) associated with consumption of FV, and to delineate non-attitudinal and non-knowledge-based factors (NANK) that hinder achievement of RDMIL. Method A cross-sectional survey of 400 randomly selected households and 16 focus group discussions (FGD) were conducted using G...
Nature Medicine, 2021
Anemia is a globally widespread condition in women and is associated with reduced economic produc... more Anemia is a globally widespread condition in women and is associated with reduced economic productivity and increased mortality worldwide. Here we map annual 2000–2018 geospatial estimates of anemia prevalence in women of reproductive age (15–49 years) across 82 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), stratify anemia by severity and aggregate results to policy-relevant administrative and national levels. Additionally, we provide subnational disparity analyses to provide a comprehensive overview of anemia prevalence inequalities within these countries and predict progress toward the World Health Organization’s Global Nutrition Target (WHO GNT) to reduce anemia by half by 2030. Our results demonstrate widespread moderate improvements in overall anemia prevalence but identify only three LMICs with a high probability of achieving the WHO GNT by 2030 at a national scale, and no LMIC is expected to achieve the target in all their subnational administrative units. Our maps show where lar...
SSRN Electronic Journal, 2021
Household food security, feeding practices, dietary diversity and copping strategies to household... more Household food security, feeding practices, dietary diversity and copping strategies to household food insecurity are largely interconnected. Using a cross sectional study approach involving 162 mothers and care givers in Kole district of Northern Uganda, this study examined the scenarios of household food security status, child feeding practices, dietary diversity and copping strategies. The study revealed that majority of the households (55%) were food secure with an overall observation of low dietary diversity at the household level (72.8%), largely showing dominance of starch-based Cereals, roots and tubers (82%) and limited consumption of other food groups, notably fruits, vegetables, meats and dairy products (18% combined). In terms of feeding practices, majority of the children were fed breast milk for at least 24 months, with mandatory exclusive breastfeeding highly adhered to, but the introduction of complementary foods often delayed and not well planned. Results also showed that a wide range of coping strategies are employed however the major ones were, reliance on less preferred food (54.9%), limiting portions of meals (35.2%), reducing number of melas taken in a day (29%), and gathering wild fruits and harvesting immature crops (29.6%). Generally, it was observed that household food security is a strong determinant of dietary of child dietary diversity, may influence feeding practices and the range of coping strategies applicable to households when they experience food insecurity. It is apparent that nutritional education, household size and livelihood diversity also play a significant role in as far as household food security status, child feeding, diversity and food insecurity copping are concerned within rural households.
Tropical Animal Health and Production, 2020
Pig farming has gained momentum for most smallholder farmers in developing countries as a means o... more Pig farming has gained momentum for most smallholder farmers in developing countries as a means of livelihood and household incomes. However, prospects of the pig enterprises are constrained by pig health management issues which affect both its productivity and profitability. Using a cross-sectional survey of 240 smallholder pig farmers, we assessed factors influencing farmers' access to veterinary services and expenditure on pig health management in northern Uganda. Data was analysed using the binary logit and censored tobit regression models. Access to veterinary services was significantly influenced by pig herd size (p < 0.05), Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) membership (p < 0.1), breed (p < 0.05), production system (p < 0.05) and number of health issues recorded on farm (p < 0.01). Education level (p < 0.01), farming household members (p < 0.05), pig herd size (p < 0.01), breed (p < 0.05), previous disease incidences (p < 0.05), household labour available (p < 0.1) and access to veterinary services (p < 0.01) significantly influenced pig health expenditure. Efforts to improve access to veterinary services and improve pig health management should focus on promoting more intensive production systems and improved breeds that are associated with better access to veterinary services and reduced cost of pig health management.
Agriculture & Food Security, 2021
BackgroundClimate change poses a threat to the sustainability of food production among small-scal... more BackgroundClimate change poses a threat to the sustainability of food production among small-scale rural communities in Sub-Saharan Africa that are dependent on rain-fed agriculture. Understanding farmers’ adaptations and the determinants of their adaptation strategies is crucial in designing realistic strategies and policies for agricultural development and food security. The main objectives of this study were to identify the adaptation strategies used by smallholder farmers to counter the perceived negative effects of climate change in northern Uganda, and factors influencing the use of specific adaptation strategies. A cross-sectional survey research design was employed to collect data from 395 randomly selected smallholder farmers’ household heads across two districts by the administration of a semi-structured questionnaire. Binary logistic regression was used to analyze the factors influencing farmers’ adaptation to climate change.ResultsThe three most widely practiced adaptati...
Journal of Geographic Information System, 2020
COVID-19 has presented itself with an extreme impact on the resources of its epi-centres. In Ugan... more COVID-19 has presented itself with an extreme impact on the resources of its epi-centres. In Uganda, there is uncertainty about what will happen especially in the main urban hub, the Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area (GKMA). Consequently, public health professionals have scrambled into resource-driven strategies and planning to tame the spread. This paper, therefore, deploys spatial modelling to contribute to an understanding of the spatial variation of COVID-19 vulnerability in the GKMA using the socioeconomic characteristics of the region. Based on expert opinion on the prevailing novel Coronavirus, spatially driven indicators were generated to assess vulnerability. Through an online survey and auxiliary datasets, these indicators were transformed, classified, and weighted based on the BBC vulnerability framework. These were spatially modelled to assess the vulnerability indices. The resultant continuous indices were aggregated, explicitly zoned, classified, and ranked based on parishes. The resultant spatial nature of vulnerability to COVID-19 in the GKMA sprawls out of major urban areas, diffuses into the peri-urban, and thins into the sparsely populated areas. The high levels of vulnerability (24.5% parishes) are concentrated in the major towns where there are many shopping malls, transactional offices, and transport hubs. Nearly half the total parishes in the GKMA (47.3%) were moderately vulnerable, these constituted mainly the parishes on the outskirts of the major towns while 28.2% had a low vulnerability.
Agricultural and Food Economics, 2019
Smallholder farming, predominant in Uganda, is characterized by low productivity for most crops i... more Smallholder farming, predominant in Uganda, is characterized by low productivity for most crops including rice which is gaining prominence as both a food and income crop. The low productivity is mostly attributed to allocative inefficiency. Allocative efficiency (AE) considers farmers’ ability to allocate resources efficiently, by producing the maximum possible output at minimum cost. Increasing AE requires an understanding of the specific sources of inefficiency that vary across farm enterprises, geographically and temporally. A cross-sectional study was carried out in Gulu and Amuru districts of Northern Uganda to assess the sources of farm-level allocative inefficiency in rice production using the stochastic frontier approach. Data were collected from a random sample of 200 smallholder rice farmers. Results show that the mean AE was 75%. Household size, distance to trading centre, farm size, number of crop enterprises, use of hired labour, use of ox-plough, and access to credit h...
ERJ Open Research, 2019
IntroductionThe World Health Organization (WHO) recommends household tuberculosis (TB) contact in... more IntroductionThe World Health Organization (WHO) recommends household tuberculosis (TB) contact investigation in low-income countries, but most contacts do not complete a full clinical and laboratory evaluation.MethodsWe performed a randomised trial of home-based, SMS-facilitated, household TB contact investigation in Kampala, Uganda. Community health workers (CHWs) visited homes of index patients with pulmonary TB to screen household contacts for TB. Entire households were randomly allocated to clinic (standard-of-care) or home (intervention) evaluation. In the intervention arm, CHWs offered HIV testing to adults; collected sputum from symptomatic contacts and persons living with HIV (PLWHs) if ≥5 years; and transported sputum for microbiologic testing. CHWs referred PLWHs, children <5 years, and anyone unable to complete sputum testing to clinic. Sputum testing results and/or follow-up instructions were returned by automated SMS texts. The primary outcome was completion of a ful...
BMC Pulmonary Medicine, 2019
Background: The management and control of pulmonary bacteriologically confirmed (PBC) tuberculosi... more Background: The management and control of pulmonary bacteriologically confirmed (PBC) tuberculosis (TB) also known as infectious TB is important not only to monitor for resistance but also to check for severity, treatment response and limit its spread. Method: A retrospective analysis of diagnosis smear results of PBC TB patients in Kampala district registered between January 2012 and December 2015 at 65 TB diagnosis and treatment units (DTUs) was done. Results: Of the 10,404 records; 6551 (63.0%) belonged to PBC TB patients, 3734 (57.0%) of whom were male. Sputum smear microscopy was the diagnostic test most commonly used 4905 (74.9%) followed by GeneXpert testing, 1023 (15.6%). Majority, 1951 (39.8%), of the PBC TB patients had a smear positivity grading of 3+ (> 10 acidfast bacillus (AFB)/Fields). Public facilities diagnosed more PBC TB patients compared to private facilities, 3983 (60. 8%) vs 2566 (39.2%). From 2012 through 2015, there was a statistically significant increase in PBC TB patients enrolled on anti-TB treatment from 1389 to 2194 (p = 0.000). The percentage of HIV positive co-infected PBC TB patients diagnosed decreased from 597(43%) to 890(40.6%) (p = 0.000) within same period. Linkage to HIV care improved from 229 (34.4%) in 2012 to 464 (52.1%) in 2015 (p = 0.000). The treatment success rate (TSR) for PBC TB patients improved from 69% in 2012 to 75.5% by end of 2015 (p = 0.001) with an improvement in cure rate from 52.3% to 62% (p = 0. 000). There was an observed significant decrease in TB related mortality from 8.9 to 6.4% (p = 0.013). Conclusion: The proportion of diagnosed PBC TB patients increased from 2012 to 2015. PBC TB patients diagnosed with 3+ smear positivity grading results consistently contributed to the highest proportion of diagnosed PBC TB patients from 2012 to 2015. This could be due to the delay in diagnosis of TB patients because of late presentation of patients to clinics. A prospective study of PBC TB patients diagnosed with 3+ smear positivity grading may elucidate the reasons for the delay to diagnosis. Further, we propose a study of wider scope to estimate how many people a single PBC TB patient is likely to infect with TB before being diagnosed and treated.
PLOS ONE, 2018
While old age is a known risk factor for developing active tuberculosis (TB), studies on TB in th... more While old age is a known risk factor for developing active tuberculosis (TB), studies on TB in the population aged 60 years and older (considered elderly in this study) are few, especially in the developing world. Results of the TB prevalence survey in Uganda found high TB prevalence (570/100,000) in people over 65. We focused on treatment outcomes in the elderly to understand this epidemic better. We conducted a retrospective analysis of data from TB facility registers in Kampala City for the period 2014-2015. We analyzed the 2014-15 cohort with respect to age, sex, disease class, patients' human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and directly observed therapy (DOT) status, type of facility, and treatment outcomes and compared findings in the elderly (�60) and younger (<60) age groups. Of 15,429 records, 3.3% (514/15,429) were for elderly patients. The treatment success rate (TSR) among elderly TB patients (68.3%) was lower than that of the non-elderly (80.9%) and the overall TSR 80.5%, (12,417/15,429) in Kampala. Although the elderly were less likely to test positive for HIV than the young (AOR 0.39; 95% CI 0.33-0.48, p<0.001), they had a twofold higher risk of unfavorable treatment outcomes (AOR 2.14; CI 1.84-2.72, p<0.001) and were more likely to die while on treatment (AOR 1.86; CI 1.27-2.73; p = 0.001). However, there was no statistically significantly difference between treatment outcomes among HIV-positive and HIVnegative elderly TB patients. Compared to the younger TB patients, elderly TB patients have markedly poorer treatment outcomes, although TB/HIV co-infection rates in this age group are lower.
Involvement of women in agriculture and the benefits they derive from it has been shroud in gende... more Involvement of women in agriculture and the benefits they derive from it has been shroud in gender stereotypes that propagate male dominance. About 60% to 90% of farm work and other related activities are performed by women yet they continue living in abject poverty. For this reason, the study was set to find out the factors influencing the involvement of women in Agriculture in Yala division of Gem district. Due to imbalanced between input and output of women in agriculture, the purpose of this study was to examine economic, socio-cultural, technological and policy factors that influence the involvement of women in agriculture in Yala division. The objectives of this study were: to determine economic factors that influence the involvement of women in agriculture in Yala Division; to establish socio-cultural factors that influence the involvement of women in agriculture in Yala Division; to determine the technological factors that influence the involvement of women in agriculture in Yala Division and to find out policies that influence the involvement of women in agriculture in Yala division. This study answered the following research questions: what are the economic factors that influence the involvement of women in agriculture? Are there socio-cultural factors that influence the involvement of women in agriculture? How do technological factors affect the involvement of women in agriculture? Are there any policies that influence the involvement of women in agriculture? The study was guided by the Equity Theory and a conceptual framework that showed the interrelatedness of various factors that influence the involvement of women in agriculture. The study utilized descriptive study design that involved administration of questionnaire and conducting in depth interview to a sample of 382 respondents drawn from a population of approximately 80,000. A multistage sampling procedure was used to select respondents and data was analyzed using descriptive statistics such as frequency and percentages counts; and inferential statistics such as Pearson (r) Product Moment Correlation Coefficient with the aid of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS®). Data is presented using frequency and percentages tables, and pie charts .The findings of the study are of significance to women farmers, the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Gender and Sports, various non-governmental organizations dealing with agriculture, gender, and human rights organization. The study has contributed a lot to the body of knowledge by explaining how agriculture is engendered in terms of economics, socio-cultural, technological and policy factors.
Uploads
Papers by Daniel comboni Okello