http://repo.lib.sab.ac.lk:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/657 Wed, 15 Apr 2026 04:01:25 GMT 2026-04-15T04:01:25Z http://repo.lib.sab.ac.lk:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/954 Irrigation and Income-Poverty Alleviation: An Assessment Study of Kampe Irrigation Dam in Kogi State, Nigeria Gbenga, Opeyemi; Babatunde; Olanrewaju, Raphael; Adenuga; Henry, Adewale; Olagunju; Iyabo, Funke Irrigation has been suggested to be a central key part in curbing food scarcity and alleviating poverty not only in Nigeria but also in many other developing countries. The continued dependence on rainfall in agriculture has proved incapable of sustaining the population increase. The study was conducted to assess the role of Kampe irrigation dam on farm household’s income-poverty status in Kogi State, Nigeria. A two stage sampling technique was utilized for the study. Samples were drawn from irrigation beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries within the project community. A total of 140 respondents were interviewed using structured questionnaire. Also, the study used the Foster-Greer-Thorbecke (FGT) model which was used to examine the incidence, gap and severity of poverty among the sampled respondents. Logit regression model was used to identify the factors contributing to poverty state in the study area. The poverty incidence was 41 % and 57 % for irrigation beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries respectively. Poverty gap i.e aggregate expenditure shortfall was 6 % and 21 % for irrigation beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries respectively. However, poverty severity was much higher among irrigation beneficiaries (28%) and 23 % for irrigation non-beneficiaries. Farm household size, total annual farm income and total input cost all contributed to the poverty situation in the study area. Conclusion, the study agree that irrigation dam project would contribute to reducing income-poverty of irrigation farm households, from the result, the study also, based on the key research findings, this study provides recommendations on policy and interventions for making irrigated agriculture effective tool for poverty reduction program Sat, 02 May 2015 00:00:00 GMT http://repo.lib.sab.ac.lk:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/954 2015-05-02T00:00:00Z http://repo.lib.sab.ac.lk:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/951 Mapping the Climate Suitability Using MaxEnt Modeling Approach for Ceylon Spinach (Basella alba L.) Cultivation in India Reddy, M. T; Begum, H; Sunil, N; Pandravada, S. R; Sivaraj, N; Kumar, S Ceylon spinach (Basella alba L.) is a traditional leafy vegetable of multiple virtues largely underutilized and underexploited in India. Currently, it is of increasing value and utilization necessitating extending its cultivation for increased production by identifying potential areas through crop modeling. Mapping the potential pockets is an iterative process and this study is the first attempt to model state-wise climate suitability for Ceylon spinach cultivation in India. Geographical information on the current cultivation sites of Ceylon spinach together with bioclimatic variables, the maximum entropy (MaxEnt) model were used to analyze and predict its distribution and to develop preliminary habitat suitability map for Ceylon spinach in India. The results show that the MaxEnt model can be used to study the climatic suitability for Ceylon spinach cultivation. The most suitable area identified in this study is slightly southward which includes parts of Tamilnadu, Pondicherry, Maharashtra, Orissa, West Bengal, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat. The MaxEnt model performed better than random with an average training and test AUC values of 0.953 and 0.994, respectively. The constructed model had excellent goodness-of-fit and excellent predictive accuracy and therefore it is suitable and/or applicable for predicting the geographic distribution of Ceylon spinach cultivation in India. Sat, 02 May 2015 00:00:00 GMT http://repo.lib.sab.ac.lk:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/951 2015-05-02T00:00:00Z http://repo.lib.sab.ac.lk:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/944 Water Treatment, Preventive Measures and the Chronic Kidney Disease in the Farming Community in Sri Lanka Ranasinghe, H. R. A. L. N; Lokuge, L. D. M. N; Edirisinghe, J. C; Bandara, L Whilst being accountable for an increasing trend in mortality and morbidity, Chronic Kidney Disease of unknown aetiology (CKDu) has become a severe burden in Sri Lanka. Even though there is no sound evidence to clarify the aetiology of CKDu, it will be worthwhile to seek out the possible measures to minimize the prevalence of the disease. Hence, this study was intended to examine the impact of water treatment and preventive measures on CKDu. Data were collected from the farming community who applies agrochemicals. Both a probit and a Logit regression were carried out to check whether there is any relationship between CKDu and related variables such as consumption of treated water and adopting safety precautions. Results reveal that age, being a male, using deep wells as a source of drinking water, and long term medication increases the probability of getting the disease while, both preventive measures and water treatment significantly reduce this probability. Therefore, ensuring an adequate supply of treated water, especially for the severely affected villages is vital. Furthermore, both government and non-government institutions should work responsibly to increase the awareness of CKDu and safety precautions, in order to save the future generation. Sat, 02 May 2015 00:00:00 GMT http://repo.lib.sab.ac.lk:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/944 2015-05-02T00:00:00Z http://repo.lib.sab.ac.lk:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/941 Role of Information on Women Consumer Decision Making on Food Quality: An Analysis Based on Visual Presentation of Dairy Quality Attributes Thilakarathne, N. T; Mudalige, U. K. Jayasinghe; Udugama, J. M. M; Edirisinghe, J. C; Herath, H. M. L. K The purpose of this study was to examine empirically, using food safety and quality attributes presented in the Caswell’s Classification as the analytical framework, whether a consumer’s decision to purchase a food product at a given point of time, in this case Yoghurt and Full Cream Milk Powder, is predominately governed by a ‘single’ common attribute/s such as ‘appearance’ or by a number of other attributes (i.e. ‘multiple’) such as ‘packaging’, ‘labeling’, ‘quality certification’, and ‘brand’, collectively. This were examined empirically under three distinct food safety information scenarios available to consumers as the product was presented to them “visually”; (1) ‘No’; (2) ‘Partial’; or (3) ‘Full’ information about the product quality. Primary data collected from 200 women consumers from urban household settings in the Gampaha district during May to June 2014 were, in turn, used to derive a Food Quality Information Index (values ranged from 0 to 1) for five different panels derived to elaborate these information scenarios. The outcome of analysis suggests that consumer preference for these products increases as more information is available on multiple attributes, including the ‘brand’, ‘labeling’, and ‘certification’, or in other words, transforming those ‘Credence’ characteristics towards ‘Experience’ and/or ‘Search’ characteristics. Results from Chi-square analysis highlight that consumer behavior is not significantly affected by their age, civil status, education, and level of income. Sat, 02 May 2015 00:00:00 GMT http://repo.lib.sab.ac.lk:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/941 2015-05-02T00:00:00Z