Background: Skin wounds affect millions of people in Africa. In rural communities’ wounds are highly prevalent due to trauma including snakebites and a wide range of infections including skin NTDs. Wound prevention and access to health services is limited due to health system related (infrastructures, materials, human resources), environmental, sociocultural and economics factors. The burden of chronic and complicated wounds is correspondingly high. The aim of this study is to investigate the community perceptions, perceived benefits and challenges of the community health worker-based wound management. Methods: We conducted mixed cross-sectional research in the rural Taabo Health demographic Surveillance System (HDSS) where the wound management project “Identify & treat wounds early” is implemented since 2019. Quantitative data was collected in 191 households randomly selected. Qualitative data was gathered from 16 in-depth interviews, 10 Focus Group Discussions involving former patients, health care personnel, traditional practitioners, and village authorities. Results: 96.9% of households were satisfied with the CHW-based service, particularly with fast healing of wounds (40.3 %), availability of the CHWs (31.9 %), sensitiveness and sociability of the CHWs (13.1%). The perceived benefits were reduction of severe wounds (33%), early recourse to care (32%), trust in CHWs care (20%) and physical well-being and wound hygiene improvement in children’s (15%). Recourse to traditional healers and self-medication diminished. Challenges are incomplete CHW coverage of households due to poor or slow integration of CHWs into the healthcare system of Côte d'Ivoire, including security of income, provision of wound dressing materials and equipment. Conclusion: Community-based CHWs are highly appreciated by the community for accessible, effective, sensitive and socially acceptable wound management. CHWs could play an important role in the prevention, early identification and treatment of wounds.
Starch is a natural, renewable, economical, and widely available polymer used as a gelling agent, thickener, binder, and potential raw material in many food products. Due to its techno-functional properties, the food and non-food industries are interested in developing starch-based materials such as films, hydrogels, starch nanoparticles, and other derivatives. This study focused on the kinetics of hydrogen peroxide oxidation of starches from four biomass sources (Yam, Cor, Pot, and Cas), as well as their structural and thermal properties. The results show that, for all the starches studied, the oxidation process is adequately described by pseudo-first-order kinetics. The crystallinity indices obtained are 27.071 ± 0.24%, 30.226 ± 0.30%, 41.170 ± 0.45%, and 36.413 ± 0.34% for Cas, Pot, Cor, and Yam, respectively. The TGA/DTG analysis highlights three phases of thermal degradation: the first is linked to the loss of residual moisture below 100°C, followed by major degradation between 150 and 310°C associated with the breakdown of glycosidic bonds. A third phase, between 310 and 550°C, is associated with the carbonization of residues, with the differences observed between starches reflecting the influence of botanical origin and structural composition on their thermal stability.
Religious experience constitutes an essential axis in analyzing the condition of modern man and the sources of his actions. Within its system of rituals, it offers an integration of music that serves as a channel for experiencing manifestations of the divine. However, music— fundamentally cultural and yielding different understandings depending on its setting— could simultaneously evoke a sensory experience that asserts itself in urban music just as it does in so-called Christian music. Thus, what is it about urban music that succeeds in moving the emotions beyond religious affiliations? Using a phenomenological and autoethnographic approach, this study leads to the idea that the persistence of cultural identity and rhythmic presence could constitute a rational and plausible explanation. This approach has the privilege of leveraging personal, seemingly subjective experiences to unlock a truthful discourse about a reality that can only be experienced subjectively.
This study assesses the impact of public internship policy on graduates’ access to decent employment in Côte d’Ivoire, using data from the Survey on the Improvement of Employment Policies in Francophone African Countries (APEAF). Based on a selection probit model and propensity score matching, the findings indicate that young people are more likely to obtaindecent employment, althoughthis probability remains very limited. Employment in the non-agricultural private sector, international organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and cooperatives also reduces the likelihood of decent employment. By contrast, holding a higher education degree increases the probability of accessing such employment. The results further show that public internship policy has a positive effect on access to decent employment, estimated at 6.65%. Internships therefore provide graduates with a positive signal to employers. Consequently, the government should allocate more resources to public employment policies that support, train, and provide internships for first-time job seekers. JEL Codes : J24, J46, J48
The leaf and flower essential oils from Cyanthillium cinereum (Asteraceae), growing wild in C & ocirc;te d'Ivoire were investigated, using a combination of chromatographic [CC, GC(RI)] and spectroscopic [MS, 13C-NMR] techniques. A novel sesquiterpene identified as (E)-trans-beta-bergamotenal, was characterized. The oils from both plant parts were found to be rich in sesquiterpene hydrocarbons with concentration ranging from 78.4-87.6% in the flowers, and 72.1-91.8% in the leaves. In total, 43 constituents (91.5-96.7%) and 37 constituents (92.2-96.4%) were identified in the flower, and leaf oils, respectively. Major components of the flower oil were gamma-humulene (17.4-37.4%) and (E)-beta-caryophyllene (19.7-34.1%), followed by trans-beta-bergamotene (3.4-13.1%). The leaf oil composition was dominated by (E)-beta-caryophyllene (40.1-56.8%), with notable amounts of caryophyllene oxide (1.4-17.5%), germacrene D (1.8-11.4%), alpha-humulene (7.1-9.0%), guaia-6,10(14)-diene (3.6-8.9%) and gamma-humulene (0.3-5.9%). The hierarchical clustering analysis showed that flower and leaf essential oils from C & ocirc;te d'Ivoire are grouped in two distinct clusters and differed from samples collected in other countries.
