The University of Lomé (French: Université de Lomé; abbreviated UL) is the largest university in Togo. Located in the city of Lomé, it was founded in 1970 as University of Benin (French: Université du Bénin) and changed its name to the University of Lomé in 2001.
To sustain vegetable production and enhance food supply, farmers increasingly rely on intensive pesticide use, raising significant public health and environmental concerns. This study characterized pesticide use patterns in vegetable farming, with emphasis on the prevalence of Highly Hazardous Pesticides (HHPs), associated risks, and farmer practice profiles in Togo and Kenya, and identified determinants of safe or unsafe behaviors. A total of 219 farmers (162 in Togo and 57 in Kenya) were surveyed using a semi-structured questionnaire and respondent-driven sampling. Phytosanitary practice typologies were assessed through Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA) followed by hierarchical clustering. The results revealed the use of 157 distinct pesticide products, with Togo recording the highest diversity (105 products, 66.9
Abstract Objective Artisanal gold mining has rapidly expanded in Burkina Faso, but its respiratory impacts remain poorly documented. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of respiratory diseases among differently exposed populations and to identify associated factors. Methods An analytical and comparative cross-sectional study was conducted from 2015 to 2020 in Séguénéga (exposed site) and Gourcy (control site). Patients aged ≥ 15 years with a documented medical diagnosis were included. Multivariate binary logistic regression was performed to identify factors associated with the occurrence of respiratory diseases. Results After exclusions, 1,274 records were retained (629 in Séguénéga, 645 in Gourcy). The overall prevalence of respiratory diseases was estimated at 29.4% (95% CI: 26.9–32.0), significantly higher (p = 0.01) in Séguénéga (32.8%, 95% CI: 29.1–36.6) compared to Gourcy (26.2%, 95% CI: 22.8–29.8). The main symptoms were cough (80.2%) and dyspnea (61.4%). Pulmonary tuberculosis was more common in Séguénéga than in Gourcy (3.2% vs. 0.5%; p = 0.01). In multivariate analysis, the exposed site (aOR = 1.41, 95% CI: 1.06–1.87; p = 0.018), age (aOR = 1.01, 95% CI: 1.01–1.02; p < 0.001), history of asthma (aOR = 9.85, 95% CI: 4.72–20.6; p < 0.001), previous tuberculosis (aOR = 28.1, 95% CI: 8.4–93.5; p < 0.001), and poor nutritional status (aOR = 1.94, 95% CI: 1.05–3.56; p = 0.035) were statistically associated with increased odds of respiratory diseases. Respiratory lethality reached 8.0% in Séguénéga compared to 1.2% in Gourcy (p < 0.001). Conclusion Artisanal gold mining is associated with an increased incidence of respiratory diseases and higher lethality in riverside areas, calling for preventive actions.
We introduce generalized Fofana spaces and we give some of their basic properties. These spaces are a kind of generalization of generalized Morrey spaces. As application, we establish the boundedness of the Hardy-Littlewood maximal operator on these new spaces.
Accurate estimation of above-ground biomass (AGB) is vital for carbon accounting, biodiversity conservation, and sustainable forest management, especially in tropical regions under strong anthropogenic pressure. This study estimated and mapped AGB in the Atacora Mountain Chain, Togo, using a multi-source remote sensing approach within Google Earth Engine (GEE). Field data from 421 plots of the 2021 National Forest Inventory were combined with Sentinel-1 Synthetic Aperture Radar, Sentinel-2 multispectral imagery, bioclimatic variables from WorldClim, and topographic data. A Random Forest regression model evaluated the predictive capacity of different variable combinations. The best model, integrating SAR, optical, and climatic variables (S1S2allBio), achieved R2 = 0.90, MAE = 13.42 Mg/ha, and RMSE = 22.54 Mg/ha, outperforming models without climate data. Dense forests stored the highest biomass (124.2 Mg/ha), while tree/shrub savannas had the lowest (25.38 Mg/ha). Spatially, ~60% of the area had biomass ≤ 50 Mg/ha. Precipitation correlated positively with AGB (r = 0.55), whereas temperature showed negative correlations. This work demonstrates the effectiveness of integrating multi-sensor satellite data with climatic predictors for accurate biomass mapping in complex tropical landscapes. The approach supports national forest monitoring, REDD+ programs, and ecosystem restoration, contributing to SDGs 13, 15, and 12 and offering a scalable method for other tropical regions.
Soil fertility plays a crucial role in crop productivity, particularly in cocoa cultivation, which is highly dependent on soil quality that directly influences both productivity and sustainability. Understanding how to achieve and maintain soil fertility on cocoa farms is fundamental to sustaining higher yields. Cocoa production in Ghana and Togo remains low, at 350–600 kg/ha, compared to the potential yield of over 1–3 tons per hectare. Given the growing demand for cocoa and limited arable land, adequate soil nutrients are essential to optimise productivity. Soil fertility indices (SFIs) have been widely used as soil metrics by integrating multiple physical, chemical, and biological soil properties. In this study, standard analytical methods were employed to evaluate the SFI through laboratory analyses of 49 surface soil samples collected at a depth of 0–30 cm with an auger. Eleven soil chemical indicators were analysed: pH (water), organic matter (OM), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), available phosphorus (P), total nitrogen (N), cation exchange capacity (CEC), electrical conductivity (EC), and carbon-to-nitrogen ratio (C/N). Principal component analysis, followed by normalisation, was used to select a minimum dataset, which was then integrated into an additive SFI. Results indicated that N, Ca, Mg, CEC, and pH were within the optimal range for most surveyed locations (96%, 94%, 92%, 73%, and 63%, respectively), while OM and C/N were within the optimal range in approximately half of the study area. Available P, K, and C/N were highly deficient in 100%, 67%, and 96% of surveyed locations, respectively. Soil fertility varied significantly among locations (p = 0.007) and was generally low, ranging from 0.15 to 0.66. Only 20% of the soils in the study area were classified as adequately fertile for cocoa cultivation. Therefore, it is necessary to restore soil nutrient balance, especially the critically low levels of K and P, through appropriate management practices that improve fertility over time and help close the yield gap.
