R4D Ethiopia

Technical Note 23. Surveying Siblings: The case for tracking brothers and sisters of Young Lives Index Children in Round 4 and Beyond

Fri, 25 May 2012 04:18 GMT

Document Type: Report

Production Year: 2012

Citation: Porter, C.; Sanchez, A.; Nair, M. Technical Note 23. Surveying Siblings: The case for tracking brothers and sisters of Young Lives Index Children in Round 4 and Beyond. Young Lives, Department of International Development at the University of Oxford, Oxford, UK (2012) 18 pp.

Summary: This note sets out the arguments for extending the sibling cross-section collected in Young Lives Round 3 (2009) to a panel in Rounds 4 and 5. It is a non-technical synthesis of two background notes from an economic and health perspective1, with some additional information and arguments. We point out three main gains in terms of content from collecting the panel of sibling data, as well as noting that extending the amount of information collected would considerably add value. Finally, without making calculations we assert that collecting sibling data would be a relatively low-cost addition to the existing survey.

First confirmed report of sugarcane common rust (Puccinia melanocephala) in Ethiopia

Fri, 25 May 2012 01:57 GMT

Document Type: Journal Article

Production Year: 2009

Citation: Kelly, P.L.; Reeder, R.; Tafesse, A. First confirmed report of sugarcane common rust (Puccinia melanocephala) in Ethiopia. Plant Pathology (2009) 58 (6) 1172-1172. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-3059.2009.02102.x]

Summary: In March 2007, researchers at the Ethiopian Sugarcane Research Services Station observed an unrecorded disease in fields of sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) variety DB377/60. Symptoms presented as brown leaf streaks on affected cane in three out of eight fields grown with variety DB377/60. Upon morphological analysis, the fungal characteristics fit the description of Puccinia melanocephala. This is thought to be the first confirmed record of Puccinia melanocephala infecting Saccharum officinarum in Ethiopia, although it has been reported from 15 other African countries.

First report of a 16SrII group phytoplasma associated with die-back diseases of papaya and citrus in Ethiopia

Thu, 24 May 2012 05:41 GMT

Document Type: Journal Article

Production Year: 2007

Citation: Arocha, Y.; Bekele, B.; Tadesse, D.; Jones, P. First report of a 16SrII group phytoplasma associated with die-back diseases of papaya and citrus in Ethiopia. Plant Pathology (2007) 56 (6) 1039-1039. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-3059.2007.01633.x]

Summary: This is the first record of phytoplasmas associated with die-back diseases of papaya and citrus in Ethiopia. The 16S rDNA phytoplasma sequences of a representative sample of papaya (Genbank acession No. DQ285659) and citrus (Genbank Accession No. DQ286576) were identical and their highest similarity (98%) was with papaya yellow crinkle in Australia (Genbank acession No. Y10097), a member of the 16SrII group (Candidatus Phytoplasma aurantifolia).

A stunting syndrome of Napier grass in Ethiopia is associated with a 16SrIII group phytoplasma

Thu, 24 May 2012 05:14 GMT

Document Type: Abstract

Production Year: 2007

Citation: Jones, P.; Arocha, Y.; Zerfy, T.; Proud, J.; Abebe, G.; Hanson, J. A stunting syndrome of Napier grass in Ethiopia is associated with a 16SrIII group phytoplasma. Plant Pathology (2007) 56 (2) 345-345. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-3059.2007.01525.x]

Summary: This paper presents the first report of 16SrIII group phytoplasma (Candidatus) on Napier grass in Ethiopia. Stunting symptoms were observed in 2004. Nucleotide sequences of the pathogen were deposited in the GenBank with accession number DQ305977.

Cohort Profile: The Young Lives Study

Tue, 22 May 2012 06:27 GMT

Document Type: Journal Article

Production Year: 2012

Citation: Barnett, I.; Ariana, P.; Petrou, S.; Penny, M.E.; Le Thuc Duc; Galab, S.; Woldehanna, T.; Escobal, J.A.; Plugge, E.; Boyden, J. Cohort Profile: The Young Lives Study. International Journal of Epidemiology (2012) : [DOI: 10.1093/ije/dys082] Published online 21 May, 2012

Summary: Young Lives is an international longitudinal study investigating the changing nature of childhood poverty in four low-income countries [Ethiopia, India (Andhra Pradesh), Peru and Vietnam] over a 15-year period. In each country, the cohort is comprised of ∼2000 children aged between 6 and 18 months and up to 1000 children aged between 7 and 8 years, recruited in 2002 and sampled from 20 sentinel sites. The first survey data collection from primary caregivers and older children took place in 2002, the second in 2006–07 and the third in 2009–10. Data on the community contexts were collected to complement the household surveys. To elaborate and extend the quantitative data, longitudinal qualitative research with a subgroup of the children was carried out in 2007, 2008 and 2010–11. Topic areas covered included nutrition, health and well-being, cognitive and physical development, health behaviours and education, as well as the social, demographic and economic status of the household. Survey data from the study are archived in the International Section of the UK Public Data Archive.

Comparing private sector family planning services to government and NGO services in Ethiopia and Pakistan: how do social franchises compare across quality, equity and cost?

Tue, 15 May 2012 02:24 GMT

Document Type: Journal Article
Creator: Shah, N.M.; Wang WenJuan; Bishai, D.M.

Production Year: 2011

Citation: Shah, N.M.; Wang WenJuan; Bishai, D.M. Comparing private sector family planning services to government and NGO services in Ethiopia and Pakistan: how do social franchises compare across quality, equity and cost? Health Policy and Planning (2011) 26 (Suppl. 1) i63-i71. [DOI: 10.1093/heapol/czr027]

Summary: Policy makers in developing countries need to assess how public health programmes function across both public and private sectors. We propose an evaluation framework to assist in simultaneously tracking performance on efficiency, quality and access by the poor in family planning services. We apply this framework to field data from family planning programmes in Ethiopia and Pakistan, comparing (1) independent private sector providers; (2) social franchises of private providers; (3) non-government organization (NGO) providers; and (4) government providers on these three factors. Franchised private clinics have higher quality than non-franchised private clinics in both countries. In Pakistan, the costs per client and the proportion of poorest clients showed no differences between franchised and non-franchised private clinics, whereas in Ethiopia, franchised clinics had higher costs and fewer clients from the poorest quintile. Our results highlight that there are trade-offs between access, cost and quality of care that must be balanced as competing priorities. The relative programme performance of various service arrangements on each metric will be context specific.

FHS Inception Phase Report

Fri, 11 May 2012 08:31 GMT

Document Type: Report

Production Year: 2011

Citation: Anon. FHS Inception Phase Report. (2011) 16 pp.

Summary: The Inception Phase for the second phase of the Future Health Systems Research Program Consortium lasted from January-August 2011. This report summarizes the progress made during that time and lays out a plan of action for the next five years of work. In particular, the report summarizes progress made on research (including different analytical frameworks, themes and methodologies), management, capacity development, policy influence and research uptake and monitoring and evaluation of the program.

Research Briefing. Africa Talks Climate: Ethiopia

Thu, 03 May 2012 01:35 GMT

Document Type: Briefing
Creator: Burton, M.; Pauker, D.; Godfrey, A.

Production Year: 2009

Citation: Burton, M.; Pauker, D.; Godfrey, A. Research Briefing. Africa Talks Climate: Ethiopia. BBC World Service Trust, London, UK (2009) 3 pp.

Summary: The research explores the public understanding of climate change in Ethiopia. It is found that most Ethiopians, regardless of religion, believe God alone has the power to change the weather. Most of the people the researchers spoke to did not know about climate change, but they did know that the seasons are becoming unpredictable and temperatures are rising. The research further concludes that although people don't understand the term 'climate change', they do recognise 'global warming'.

Young Lives Working Paper 77. Are Work and Schooling Complementary or Competitive for Children in Rural Ethiopia?: A Mixed-methods study.

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 05:05 GMT

Document Type: Working Paper
Creator: Orkin, K.

Production Year: 2012

Citation: Orkin, K. Young Lives Working Paper 77. Are Work and Schooling Complementary or Competitive for Children in Rural Ethiopia?: A Mixed-methods study. Young Lives, Department of International Development at the University of Oxford, Oxford, UK (2012) 36 pp. ISBN 978-1-904427-88-9

Summary: Participation in work and school are often assumed to be mutually exclusive. Thus, economists commonly present children’s work and study patterns as a competition over time. In this paper, it is not the time involved, but the characteristics of the activity that appear to influence complementary or competitive relationship between work and school.

This mixed methods study combines qualitative data from Leki, a field site in a rural area near lake Ziway in the Oromia region, Ethiopia, and approximately 625 children surveyed with caregivers in Ethiopia during 2002-03 and again in 2006-07. The results provide a number of insights into the characteristics of work and school activities that have implications for how children balance each. Work-related features included the scarcity of work. If children got the rare chance to work on a farm, such an opportunity would often take precedence over going to school. Many types of work were indivisible. Tasks could not be stopped, started, and completed over time. Some forms of domestic work, like cooking, could be equally indivisible for girls. Further, if work was particularly tiring, it could diminish children’s ability to concentrate and pay attention at school. Finally, attempting to do chores and study at home could mean that work and school competed for children’s attention. Girls said that it was difficult to study at home because they could be called to do chores at any time. Conversely, boys noted that they were able to read while herding, making it easier to keep up with their school work.

Costs and flexibility were particularly important for school participation. Some children dropped out because they could not afford the school supplies and uniforms required. Also, the school calendar was not flexible to fit with children’s patterns of work. For example, the calendar did not accommodate the vegetable harvest, a common time in which children were needed to work. In summary, this paper draws attention to a more complex relationship between work and school. Rural Ethiopian children were able to balance the two not merely based upon the time an activity required, but upon numerous features of the activity that made it more or less feasible to juggle.

Young Lives Working Paper 76. A Mixed-method Taxonomy of Child Poverty: A Case Study from Rural Ethiopia.

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 04:47 GMT

Document Type: Working Paper
Creator: Roelen, K.; Camfield, L.

Production Year: 2012

Citation: Roelen, K.; Camfield, L. Young Lives Working Paper 76. A Mixed-method Taxonomy of Child Poverty: A Case Study from Rural Ethiopia. Young Lives, Department of International Development at the University of Oxford, Oxford, UK (2012) 28 pp. ISBN 978-1-904427-87-2

Summary: There are long-standing debates about how to measure poverty and well-being and how to classify household and individuals in terms of poverty status. This paper informs those debates. It presents a taxonomy of poverty and vulnerability that has been developed from a mixed methods study of rural children and households in Ethiopia. Qualitative information is used to inform and development of quantitative indicators that will assess poverty and vulnerability.

The taxonomy was developed using a ’generic construction process’ that includes five steps: identification of the purposes of the study, formulation of a conceptual framework, selection and formulation of both the domains and then the indicators, and finally, construction of outcome measures. The data used in this construction process were gathered from children and adults across eight rural sites in Ethiopia. Children discussed their attitudes and views about what it meant to be poor. Additionally, adult responses were gathered about certain households. They were asked to classify specified households at present, and to recall how the same households were classified 25 years ago. This, along with household histories, provided a descriptive picture of change over time. Indicators that emerged included things like owning draught animals, which was a clear sign that a household was moving out of poverty. In contrast, owning no land or livestock indicated severe poverty.

These indicators, identified through qualitative measures, form the basis for quantitative measures of poverty that are relevant to rural Ethiopian contexts. By constructing a taxonomy in this way, this study makes a significant contribution to the debates about how to measure poverty and classify individuals or households.