Showing papers by "University of Zambia published in 1986"

Patterns and determinants of infant mortality in developed nations, 1950-1975.

Abstract: The United States rank on infant mortality falls well below what its level of national income would predict. This suggests that standard economic development and demographic explanations of infant mortality may not apply to developed nations. Using data for 18 industrial countries we test the validity of standard explanations (national product urbanization fertility decline female education medical care) and alternative explanations (income inequality population heterogeneity welfare and medical expenditures problems of the modern health care system). The results "show strong support for standard explanations and show that the United States position is associated with high teenage fertility unemployment ethnic diversity and few hospital beds." (EXCERPT)

The church, labour and the press in zambia: the role of critical observers in a one-party state

Abstract: Introduction THE RIGHT TO CRITICIZE one s government is regarded as one of the fundamental features of a democracy. This seems at first glance to be incompatible with the existence of one-party states. Indeed, the very mention of one-party states to one only familiar with current Western parliamentary systems stirs up feelings about a political system totally suffocated by the heavy-handedness of authoritarianism. Even wellinformed critics and supporters of one-party states tend to paint the dark side of their experiences when describing these states. In the case of postcolonial African states, this view is not surprising; the Ghanaian, Busia, observed that the one-party state had been achieved through various ways in different countries, by mergers, dissolution, absorption, or suppression of opposition parties. As far as West Africa is concerned, Professor Arthur Lewis finds it significant that no party now in power went to the polls in a free election seeking a mandate to create a single-party system .... Sirlgle-party power was seized, not granted by voters. 1 Except for Tanzania and a handful of other African states, all African countries emulated the West African example of imposing one-party constitutions on their people. In Zambia, for example, a national commission was established prior to the introduction of a one-party state in 1973. The commission was charged among other things, with the responsibility of assessing opinions and receiving suggestions from various groups across the country regarding the proposed one-party state structure.2 This gesture, however, was not a substitute for a referendum or a popular poll on the issue. Additionally, the repressive orientation found in most of these states and subsequent military coups have tended to confirm Western fears about one-party states and to promote stereotyped images of their 'sham' democracy. Consequently, objective studies of democratic experiments and developments in one-party states of Africa have been extremely rare. 3

Stratigraphy of mid-Paleozoic island-arc rocks in part of the northern Sierra Nevada, Sierra and Nevada Counties, California

Abstract: New stratigraphic data for the mid-Paleozoic island-arc succession in the northern Sierra Nevada are presented from a well-exposed area in Sierra and Nevada Counties. The Grizzly Formation of Diller is shown to be a laterally discontinuous but regionally extensive epiclastic unit at the base of the arc succession. Newly discovered macrofossils and conodonts date the formation as Late Devonian (Frasnian–mid-Famennian), and it records a widespread erosional episode that affected the underlying Shoo Fly Complex prior to the onset of arc volcanism. The Grizzly Formation is conformably overlain by the Sierra Buttes Formation, a sequence of silicic to andesitic submarine ash-fall tuffs; tuffaceous turbidites; and thick, nonwelded, subaqueous volcaniclastic mass-flow deposits intercalated with radiolarian cherts. Coeval hypabyssal intrusions show evidence of rapid chilling against wet, unlithified sediment, and some consist of complex masses of intrusive hyaloelastite breccia and pillows. Newly discovered conodonts, together with previously described fossils, show that the Sierra Buttes Formation was deposited largely or entirely in the mid-Famennian. Andesitic tuffs and tuff-breccias of the Upper Devonian-Lower Mississippian(?) Taylor Formation abruptly overlie the Sierra Buttes Formation, with no evidence for an intervening Elwell Formation. Like the Sierra Buttes Formation, the Taylor Formation contains abundant coarse-grained subaqueous volcaniclastic mass-flow deposits interbedded with finer-grained rocks. The two formations together constitute a thick sequence of volcaniclastic debris that accumulated rapidly below storm-wave base in an active island-arc setting.

Spontaneously settled refugees in Northwestern Province, Zambia.

Abstract: The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) commissioned researchers from the University of Zambia to conduct a socioeconomic survey and census of "spontaneously settled" Zairean and Angolan refugees in the Northwestern Province of Zambia in 1982. The sample consisted of 188 Angolans 201 Zaireans and 2 South Africans. The difficulties experienced by refugees in Northwestern Province in achieving integration were related to a combination of factors including the lack of a clear national policy on refugees and refugee status a national concern for maintaining security the popular belief that aliens are responsible for an increasing crime rate the desire by immigration officials for stricter laws to control alien infiltration conflict between traditional and modern leaders and Zambias deteriorating economic situation. In spite of the problems described the integration of refugees into existing communities is a desirable goal and should be encouraged. One should not assume that self-settling refugees are able to live with ethnic kin receive assistance and hospitality and thus are better off than those in camps. The Zambian case provides ample evidence that integration is not easy even with kin support shared ethnicity language and historical connections. Moreover given the fact that Zambia will continue to receive refugees it is vital that there is a well defined refugee policy and an administrative mechanism for implementing that policy at all levels. This will be particularly important in Zambia as it will undoubtedly continue to receive large influxes of refugees from countries such as Namibia Uganda Angola Mozambique and South Africa.

The politics of the signifier: Ngugi wa Thiong'o's Petals of Blood

Abstract: (1986). The politics of the signifier: Ngugi wa Thiong'o's Petals of Blood. World Literature Written in English: Vol. 26, No. 1, pp. 1-24.

Applying operations research to health planning: locating health centres in Zambia

Abstract: Decisions about placement of rural health centers can be based on needs of users providers or politicians: this paper presents an options table method for locating centers in 2 rural districts in Zambia. 3 types of planning frameworks have been used in the past: the single criterion of accessibility for users; the multiple criteria of inclusion of all who will be affected by community participation; and a formal method that attempts to include all objectively. This method gives numerical values and weight factors for all elements and compares them for each option. The elements considered were average distance that must be travelled standard deviation of average distance maximum distance population within a given distance from a center and the distance to the next center. In the I examples from Zambia the options were already partially clarified and the users had been involved at an early stage in planning. Other criteria could have been used for example characteristics of the site availability of equipment personnel roads water electric power the local political situation and costs. These may be ranked rather than quantified. Decisions on how to weight the criteria allow wide scope for conflict between groups. The framework outlined here does not remove conflict from the planning procedure. It does allow clarification of the costs and benefits of the alternatives input from various groups at an earlier stage and a consensus to be reached from apparently incompatible interests.

Evaluation of high purity graphite sample containers for use with rapid instrumental epithermal neutron activation analysis

Abstract: The suitability of graphite of spectral quality as a sample container in short irradiations for neutron activation analysis has been investigated. The material is found to be a viable alternative to polyethylene containers especially in high flux irradiation positions where the properties of the latter deteriorate as a result of high neutron and gamma dose rates. Examples of application are demonstrated in epithermal neutron irradiations of biological materials and the accuracy and precision of the determinations were assessed.

Some Aspects of Child Health in an Urban Township Lusaka

Abstract: A random sample of 9 of the 235 sections in Lima Ward north of Lusaka have been studied. 8% of 213 households surveyed have been established in the last year. Each household has an average of 5.2 people but there are nearly 7 people to each house. There were 1118 people seen in these 9 sections of whom 48% were under 15 years old with 20.6% being under 5 years old. Over 22% were women of childbearing age and only 1.7% admitted to being 55 years or older. The birth rate was 59/1000 and the death rate 19.7/1000. Only 3/4 of the total adult population have received any education of whom there were many more men than women. There is no difference between the proportions of boys and girls presently at school. There was an estimated child loss of 166.7/1000 amongst women of parity 1 to 4 and 226.4/1000 for women of higher parity. Breastfeeding usually continues for 18 months or more although 11.7% of children reportedly stopped before a year old. Of 187 children of known immunization status 81% had received immunization against measles and 70.5% had received at least 2 doses of poliomyelitis vaccine. Nutritional status was difficult to quantify due to uncertainty of age. Considering weight for age nearly 18% were below 80% of average; height for age 21.2% were below 90% of average; but as regards weight for height only 1.7% were below 80% of average. This indicates that there is chronic malnutrition to which the children have become adjusted. Using mid-arm circumference measurements 6.5% of children were less than 80% of average. Measures are being explored to improve the collection of vital statistics in the Ward through cooperation with the Party Officials and to decrease mortality and morbidity due to diarrhea by instructing the people in the use of oral rehydration salts. (authors modified)

Adult education is many things: its meaning and implications.

Abstract: Many adult educationists have laboured in an attempt to define what is meant by Adult Education. Some of the definitions are confined much more to the philosophical aspect of the concept, while others restrict themselves to the functional or clientele criterion. Consequently, vital shades of some Adult Education activities are left out of the concept. This paper attempts to bring out together all the different shades of Adult Education by firstly considering the two words ‘Adult’ and ‘Education’ separately. Then, the meaning of Adult Education is further derived at by its function (especially in the Third World), clientele, content and pedagogical aspects. It is then concluded that unlike other professions, ‘Adult Education’ simply means many things; a situation that relegates it to an inferior position.

Techniques for the estimation of daily and hourly global radiation

Abstract: Using the least square technique, the simple Angstrom equation H=Ho (a+bS/SO) and the equation H'=HO(a+bS/So), suggested by Hay for incorporating the effects of (i) multiple reflections, and (ii) not burning of the sunshine recorder chart for small elevation of the sun, were fitted to the global radiation and the sunshine duration data of Trieste and 30 other Italian locations. Good correlation is obtained in almost all the cases. The values of the regression constants a and b show substantial scatter which do not decrease by the use of Hay's equation. The simple Angstrom equation is used to provide fairly accurate estimates of the global radiation for Italian locations. Hourly global radiation data for Trieste is also analyzed. The normal distribution curve where t is the solar time, is found to fit the experimental values of the ratio rt (hourly/daily) closely. The a values obtained by matching the experimental and theoretical values at solar noon, are found to bear the linear relationship σ=0.461+0.192 SO. This provides a simple and universal technique for estimating the hourly or half-hourly global radiation values from the daily values.