Doing well by the Grace of God. Registered for antenatal yesterday. Getting my energy levels back.

God is our rock and strength!

Missfree:
Team July ,Team bellefull how are we all doing oya answer register oo


Name. __________ Edd. _________Sex
Missfree____________18
Goldengold2._______14
Ara18. ______________ 22
Niceapple____________12
Cindylee______________24
Redrosely_____________31

Team July how are we doing now how is our Lo this one wey we just dey quite. Hope we have started antenatal or you are just like Me waiting till February. May God see us through

Yes it is. It is an infection but can be easily treated with the right antibiotics that won't harm you or your baby. Speak to your doctor during your next appointment. It will keep getting detected in your urine when it is cultured.

When you are OK, take a lot of probiotic food like pap and yoghurt. Then you can eat lot of garlic to prevent reinfection. Always wipe from front to back so that bacteria from the backside won't affect the front side.

All the best

SoCalm:
Please is UTI harmful in pregnancy?

Not so good please. Try to eat something. Find out what you can stomach and eat. During my first it was the same thing. I had to imagine and imagine of something that I could eat. Eventually, me that's not a yoruba girl ended up eating amala and ewedu. How this happened I don't know. I had never eaten it prior to getting pregnant but my mind said that's it. Surprisingly, it went beautifully well. That's what I ate until my appetite returned to normal.

Not good to stay without nutrients at all.

Onceavictim:
I have been going like 3 days or more without eating anything. Most time I take only water and will be ok. Hope it won't have effect on my baby. I'm 13weeks gone already

Congratulations!!!! Thank God Mummy and baby are alright. That's the most important. Take care of yourself properly please so you can recover well physically and mentally.

Oluwasemiloba:
Finally, my pink jet landed on 20th this month. Edd- 22, 25 and 27 of January.

I almost died in the labour room, eventually she was birthed through emergency CS. weighing 3.5kg.

CS recovery ideas are highly needed at the moment.

I had severe preclamsia in my second and I had emergency CS at 38 weeks thank God so there was no need for anything. The BP developed suddenly. Everything was fine until around 37 weeks and I can speculate on what induced it. Although yes it's pregnancy induced, I can say it was due to lack of sleep - I had a toddler that was giving me a lot of trouble so I wasn't sleeping well. Had insomnia and by morning when sleep is coming, she's awake. Was barely managing 3 hours sleep per day.

Secondly, I wasn't eating well. Wasn't taking enough vegetables, green vegetables especially so my sodium content was high. I can remember eating indomie one night and that was when my legs and hands got swollen. I knew something was wrong in my body immediately I finish eating that indomie - I have heard that indomie has a high sodium content.

Thirdly I was afraid. Why? To be honest, I don't know why. Fear is a demon. Please ladies, don't ever guard fear in your heart no matter what! We are co-creators with God so He is on our side. I remember always rushing to the hospital with any little thing. After I had my baby, I dealt with this fear. It is a spirit and I cast it out of my body. I choose to have the spirit of Love, Power and Sound Mind. I have the Love of God in me.

These things contributed to my BP skyrocketing. I am in the UK and I had more than 20 doctors attending to me because of the severe preclamsia. Machine couldn't even read it again at a time. It was just going off with high sound. They were all scared. Na there God tell me say, this fear needs to be dealt with.

Going forward, I started eating healthy. Lots of vegetables, reduced starch and carbohydrates. Intermittent fasting. Took supplements. I also did a lot of bitterleaf juice - read that it reduces but can't take it during pregnancy. My body came back to normal and was able to conceive smoothly again. This time around, I dropped off work so I am a full time stay at home mum. I don't care what people say, if you like call me lazy, na you know. My health and life first. I rest and sleep when I am tired. I do housework when I can. God helped me to develop the courage to put myself first irrespective of what anybody says. I also try to eat well - eating well is not wolfing down high carb contents. It means eating vegetables, soups, fruits and lots of exercise. Best of all, don't guard fear in your heart. God is on your side women. Just know that.

I dey type sha �. All the best mamas.

Belovedbaby:
Reduce salt,take enough water,eat cucumber then rest a lot,my BP is always 137/88 every morning sometimes 140/90 but immediately I use my drugs it will crash down to 110/70 till night please do not be scared,rest your mind.We have mamas here with bp issues and they birth successfully, please those mamas should please enlighten us more

Thanks. We are doing well o. Spit wants to finish me. Please is there a way one can reduce this salivating? I can spit a total of 3 full cups in a day. Can't just seem to manage it. I can't even say it's spit. It's water coming out of my mouth.

Aside that, we are fine by God's grace. First semester done and dusted and boy am I so glad. First trimester was horrible for me. Hormones everywhere. I was crying everyday for no reason. My body irritating me. My house irritating me. My food irritating me. Everything was just anyhow anyhow. Thank God hormones have settled.

God will see us through in Jesus name. Safe journey to all mommas. We will deliver safely and carry our children in Jesus name.

Missfree:
Team July ,Team bellefull how are we all doing oya answer register oo


Name. __________ Edd. _________Sex
Missfree____________18
Goldengold2._______14
Ara18. ______________ 22
Niceapple____________12
Cindylee______________24
Redrosely_____________31

Please add me. July 24. Team silent member but decided to join.

Thanks

Missfree:
Team July Team bellefull


Name. __________ Edd. _________Sex
Missfree____________18
Goldengold2._______14
Ara18. ______________ 22
Niceapple____________12

ou are invited to apply for the African Young Women Leaders Fellowship Programme – a partnership between the African Union Commission (AUC) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

This exciting partnership aims to build a new generation of young African women leaders and experts to serve Africa and the world in designing and implementing development programmes in the context of the SDGs and Agenda 2063.

Duties and Responsibilities
The African Young Women Leaders Fellowship Programme offers an interesting assignment with UNDP at Headquarters in New York or in a regional or country office.

Following a joint induction by AUC and UNDP, Fellows will work under the supervision and coaching of an experienced UNDP people manager and will participate in a mentorship and transformative leadership development training programme jointly developed by AUC and UNDP.

https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/07/10/apply-for-the-undp-african-union-young-women-leaders-fellowship-programme/

Applications are invited for the Facebook Fellowship Program available to PhD students globally who are enrolled in an accredited university in any country. International and domestic holders can apply for the Facebook program.

Facebook Fellowship Program is open to PhD candidates globally who are enrolled in an accredited university in any country.



The Program is designed to encourage and support promising doctoral pupils who are engaged in innovative and relevant research in areas related to computer science and engineering.

Application Deadline: October 4, 2019

Eligibility

International and domestic applicants can apply for these facebook awards.
Full-time PhD holders who are currently involved in on-going research who are enrolled in an accredited university in any country
Candidates work must be related to one or more relevant disciplines (see research areas below)
Applicants must be enrolled during the academic year(s) the grants are awarded
First or second year PhD holders who fit the criteria of a minority group that is under-represented* in the technology sector have the option of being evaluated for an Emerging Scholar Award.
Applications will be accepted from pupils with research related to one of the following areas:
Applied Statistics, AR/VR Photonics and Optics, CommAI, Computational Social Science, Computer Vision, Computer Storage and Efficiency, Distributed Systems, Economics and Computation, Hardware and Software Infrastructure for Machine Learning, Machine Learning, Natural Language Processing, Networking and Connectivity, Programming Languages, Security/Privacy, Spoken Language Processing and Audio Classification and UX/Instagram

Application Procedure:
How to Apply: All applicants will need to use their Facebook account to apply. Once applicants provide with their reference contact email, they will be sent an email with a link to submit their letter. Once they have submitted, the application page will show a “Received” message below their name. Applicants may resend the reminder email to their references from the application page if needed.
Supporting Documents: To apply, students must be ready to submit the Resume or CV, with email, phone and mailing address, and applicable coursework noted and Two letters of recommendation.
Admission Requirements: To apply for the program applicants must have a previous degree.
Language Requirement: Applicants from outside the home country will often need to meet specific English language/other language requirements in order to be able to study there.

Benefit
Winners of the award are entitled to receive two years of tuition and fees paid, a stipend of $37,000 each year, and up to $5,000 in conference travel support.
Facebook Fellowship Award Includes

Tuition and fees will be paid for the academic year (up to two years/four semesters
$37K grant (one-time payment during each academic year
Up to $5,000 in conference travel support
Paid visit to Facebook headquarters to for the annual Fellowship Summit

https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/05/20/facebook-fellowship-program-for-international-students-2019-full-funding/

DAAD is offering three-year PhD scholarships for full-time study towards the PhD degree in Biochemistry and Microbiology at Rhodes University at the beginning of 2020. The programme is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). A maximum of 5 scholarships are available for admission in 2020. The scholarships cover costs associated with the degree and include a monthly stipend of 500 euros.

Eligibility

Citizens of a sub-Saharan country (excluding South Africa)
M.Sc. degree (or equivalent) in Biochemistry, Microbiology, Biotechnology or a related science completed not more than 6 years ago. Note that if your M.Sc. is not completed, you should submit a letter from your current supervisor indicating that the degree will be completed by June 2020

Good working knowledge of English
Strong motivation and commitment
Application Procedure

The application procedure starts by application to Rhodes University which is due on Friday 17th May, 2019. A committee will screen applications, and shortlisted candidates will be contacted and required to submit documentations to DAAD via the DAAD online portal, DAAD will make the final selection of resourceful candidates.

Please submit the following documentation as a single PDF File

Letter of motivation (explaining your interest in Biochemistry/Microbiology and why you wish to do a PhD, Maximum 1 page)
CV using the template found here: https://europass.cedefop.europa.eu/editors/en/cv/compose
certified copy of academic transcript/degree certificates
reference letters from 2 academic references
passport/ID as proof of citizenship
Please email the above documents as a single PDF file to pgfunding@ru.ac.za by 17:00 on Friday 17th May 2019. Please name the file “DAAD-Your name”.

Female applicants and applicants from less privileged backgrounds are encouraged to participate in the programme.



Queries may be addressed to Prof Adrienne Edkins on a.edkins@ru.az.az

https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/05/14/call-for-applications-for-daad-phd-scholarships-to-study-biochemistry-microbiology/

The World Data Lab recently published data showing that poverty in Africa is falling. As at March 2019, more Africans are falling below the extreme poverty line. According to this data, at the rate of 267 people per day, more people will not be born in poverty. By the end of this year, this number is expected to increase to over 3000 people per day resulting in a 1 million-person reduction in total poverty by 2020 according to Bloomberg.

Going by this trend, the extreme poor in Africa is expected to reduce by 45 million in 2030 representing 24% down from 33.5 percent. Thankfully, four countries already have rates below 3 percent. They are Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Mauritius, and Seychelles. The Gambia and Mauritania are expected to join this group by 2030.


According to Bloomberg, extreme poverty will be extinct in the following countries:

Ethiopia is currently Africa’s second largest economy. 22 million people will be lifted out of extreme poverty by 2030 reducing the rate from 25.6 percent today to 3.9 percent.

Ghana is projected to reduce the total number of people living under poverty by 2 million reducing the rate from 12.5 percent today to 4.4 percent by 2030.

Kenya will lift 3.5 million people out of poverty by 2030 from 20.9 percent today to 4.3 percent. IT’s population is projected to increase by 23 million by the same time.

Angola is expected to reduce extreme poverty by 3.5 percent in 2030.

Côte d’Ivoire will also make substantial progress in poverty reduction. By 2030, 5.3 million of its citizens are projected to be lifted out of poverty, bringing down the percentage of citizens living in extreme poverty from 17.2 percent today to 4.9 percent.

Djibouti, is projected to reduce relative poverty from 14.2 percent to 4.6 percent—lifting over 80,000 of its citizens out of poverty by 2030.


Going by these trends, if countries continue to implement the right economic policies, African economies will be able to meet the sustainable development goal targets.

https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/05/13/at-last-poverty-in-africa-is-falling-very-fast-kenya-ethiopia-ghana-and-cote-divoire-on-the-right-path/

Unilever is on the hunt for inspiring young innovators who are tackling a social or environmental problem head on! Enter the Awards by 30 June 2019!

CALLING ALL YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS

If you’ve got an initiative, product or service beyond the idea stage and already in action that’s tackling a sustainability problem, Unilever wants to hear from you.

This year, the Awards will recognise initiatives in three key areas:

Improve People’s Health and Well Being

Unilever wants to help people all over the world take action to improve their health and well-being. The approach encompasses physical and mental health, hygiene and nutrition.

Improve the Health of the Planet

Unilever is committed to improving the health of the planet as it grows its business by reducing the footprint of products and preserving natural environments for the next generation. Unilever is working to help communities prosper and planet flourish.

Contribute to a Fairer and More socially Inclusive World

Unilever contributes to the economic livelihoods of many people and communities across its value chain. In developing and emerging markets, there is an even greater impact. The supplier and distribution networks involve millions of smallholder farmers, distributors and retailers, many of whom are from diverse backgrounds across gender, ethnicity, age and ability.

Eligibility

Anyone from around the world (excluding Russia), aged between 18 and 35 (as of 29 June 2019).

Deadline

June 30, 2019

Prize Money

Each year, Unilever provides up to eight winners with financial support to help them grow – with the overall winner of the HRH The Prince of Wales Young Sustainability Entrepreneur Prize receiving €50,000. All winners attend a residential Accelerator Programme run by the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership, followed by a year of mentoring support completely tailored to their needs. That could range from business support through to personal development coaching – whatever is most needed to help that entrepreneur and their business succeed. And where it’s right for both sides, Unilever will support the entrepreneur to open doors and make new business connections – whether that’s within Unilever or elsewhere. The remaining winners will each receive a €8,500 cash award and one-to-one mentoring support tailored to their specific needs for a duration of 12 months.

Read more and apply
https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/05/08/apply-for-the-unilever-2019-young-entrepreneurs-award/

Unilever is on the hunt for inspiring young innovators who are tackling a social or environmental problem head on! Enter the Awards by 30 June 2019!

CALLING ALL YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS

If you’ve got an initiative, product or service beyond the idea stage and already in action that’s tackling a sustainability problem, Unilever wants to hear from you.

This year, the Awards will recognise initiatives in three key areas:

Improve People’s Health and Well Being

Unilever wants to help people all over the world take action to improve their health and well-being. The approach encompasses physical and mental health, hygiene and nutrition.

Improve the Health of the Planet

Unilever is committed to improving the health of the planet as it grows its business by reducing the footprint of products and preserving natural environments for the next generation. Unilever is working to help communities prosper and planet flourish.

Contribute to a Fairer and More socially Inclusive World

Unilever contributes to the economic livelihoods of many people and communities across its value chain. In developing and emerging markets, there is an even greater impact. The supplier and distribution networks involve millions of smallholder farmers, distributors and retailers, many of whom are from diverse backgrounds across gender, ethnicity, age and ability.

Eligibility

Anyone from around the world (excluding Russia), aged between 18 and 35 (as of 29 June 2019).

Deadline

June 30, 2019


Prize Money

Each year, Unilever provides up to eight winners with financial support to help them grow – with the overall winner of the HRH The Prince of Wales Young Sustainability Entrepreneur Prize receiving €50,000. All winners attend a residential Accelerator Programme run by the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership, followed by a year of mentoring support completely tailored to their needs. That could range from business support through to personal development coaching – whatever is most needed to help that entrepreneur and their business succeed. And where it’s right for both sides, Unilever will support the entrepreneur to open doors and make new business connections – whether that’s within Unilever or elsewhere. The remaining winners will each receive a €8,500 cash award and one-to-one mentoring support tailored to their specific needs for a duration of 12 months.

Read more on how to apply

https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/05/08/apply-for-the-unilever-2019-young-entrepreneurs-award/

Nigeria LNG Limited supports education through several initiatives. One of them is Scholarships. NLNG has a four-tier scholarship programme which channels support for human capital development and encourage high performance, ultimately growing a pool of high potential students, graduates and professionals with competitive advantage.

​​NLNG Post Primary Scholarship

The scheme aims at supporting high performing basic six pupils in company’s host communities and the oil-producing states of Nigeria to access post primary education uninterruptedly.

The scheme kicked off in 2012 with 28 beneficiaries, and has grown to a total of 172 beneficiaries by 2015. Prospective pupils are admitted onto the scheme based on excellent performance at the annual National Examinations Council’s (NECO) Common Entrance Examinations.


​​NLNG Undergraduate Scholarship

This was founded as a critical component of education intervention programme for our host communities in 1998 and later opened up to the rest of Nigeria in 2003.

A total of 2,833 undergraduates from various universities in Nigeria have benefited from the scholarship scheme with a spend of over N600 million. The introduction of online application and use of social media (Facebook) for information dissemination in 2012 made the selection process more efficient and cost effective, and increased awareness. The value of the scholarship has been reviewed upward from N100, 000 to N300, 000 per awardee for an academic year and it runs throughout the duration of the student’s course.

NLNG Overseas Post Graduate Scholarship

This scheme was launched in October 2012 with an annual intake of 15 beneficiaries to study in leading UK universities with an award value ranging between N9 and N11 million, depending on the course of study and course duration. The scheme covers listed disciplines: Environmental Studies, Engineering, Management, Accountancy, Economics, Information Technology, Geology, Banking, Law and Medicine.

NLNG Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Scholarship

The security situation in North Eastern Nigeria has unfortunately created a large population of vulnerable persons. This scheme was instituted to complement Federal Government’s effort in rebuilding Nigeria’s North-Eastern region through award of scholarships to 30 candidates (10 from each of the IDP camps in the three states worse hit by insurgency – Adamawa, Borno and Yobe). This award is to take the set of students through secondary education.

All application portals close Monday, 13 May 2019

Click here to apply

https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/05/01/nigeria-lng-scholarships-for-post-primary-undergraduate-and-post-graduate-students/

The USA is the world’s largest market and it buys a lot of products from the rest of the world. In 2018 alone, the US spent more than $2.6 trillion on imports from over 200 countries.

This huge and lucrative trade opportunity will open up markets for Africans in the diaspora. According to this article, uniquely African products such as shea butter, spices, moringa tea leaves, local foodstuffs, tropical fruits and nuts have become promising business opportunities on the international market. It’s these types of products that present unique opportunities for African entrepreneurs and businesses looking to enter the export trade.

In an interview with smallstarter.com, Danny Lennarz, co-founder of Registrar Corp, a company that ensures exporters around the world meet the compliance requirements of the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA), highlighted three mistakes exporters make when exporting products to the world. Read below

Improper labelling

Labelling mistakes are one of the leading causes of FDA detentions.

FDA’s labelling rules for all products are strict and extensive, with regulations particular to everything down to the font size.

Here is a list of the top five food labeling errors to help new exporters avoid these same mistakes.

Continue reading
https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/04/30/avoid-these-three-most-common-mistakes-african-businesses-make-when-exporting-products-to-the-usa/

According to the recent guidelines released by the World Health Organisation (WHO), children under five must spend less time sitting down watching screens including televisions and phones. They must get more time for active play and better quality sleep in order to grow up healthy. Experts from the organisation reviewed evidence around the benefits of increased activity level and made recommendations.

According to WHO, failure to meet current physical activity recommendations is responsible for more than 5 million deaths globally each year across all age groups. Currently, over 23% of adults and 80% of adolescents are not sufficiently physically active. For a 24 hour period, replace sedentary activity and screen time with more interactive non screen based activities such as reading, storytelling, singing and puzzles which are very important for a child’s development.

Infants (less than 1 year) should:

Be physically active several times a day in a variety of ways, particularly through interactive floor-based play; more is better. For those not yet mobile, this includes at least 30 minutes in prone position (tummy time) spread throughout the day while awake.

Not be restrained for more than 1 hour at a time (e.g. prams/strollers, high chairs, or strapped on a caregiver’s back). Screen time is not recommended. When sedentary, engaging in reading and storytelling with a caregiver is encouraged.

Have 14–17h (0–3 months of age) or 12–16h (4–11 months of age) of good quality sleep, including naps.

Children 1-2 years of age should:

Spend at least 180 minutes in a variety of types of physical activities at any intensity, including moderate-to-vigorous-intensity physical activity, spread throughout the day; more is better.

Not be restrained for more than 1 hour at a time (e.g., prams/strollers, high chairs, or strapped on a caregiver’s back) or sit for extended periods of time. For 1-year-olds, sedentary screen time (such as watching TV or videos, playing computer games) is not recommended. For those aged 2 years, sedentary screen time should be no more than 1 hour; less is better. When sedentary, engaging in reading and storytelling with a caregiver is encouraged.

Have 11-14 hours of good quality sleep, including naps, with regular sleep and wake-up times.

https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/04/26/watching-tv-or-videos-on-screens-playing-computer-games-not-healthy-for-children-under-2-years/

It’s no longer news that Notre-Dame of Paris, the Catholic Church was caught up in fire on 15th April, 2019. The fire destroyed the cathedral’s attic and most of the roof, violet-le-Duc’s 19th century spire and some of the rib vaulting. The Cathedral is one of the most recognised symbol of France. You can now understand why French Billionaires and companies are competing among themselves to give the highest donation for the rebuilding of the cathedral. On the day of the fire, you could also see the horror on the face of Parisians as the spire fell down due to the burning flames. To them, it was heart breaking. Some Parisians have described the feeling as loosing someone close to them.


While I wholeheartedly sympathise with France and Europe, I could not help but think about Nigeria. Even when I wanted to escape from the thought, it kept coming back. You see, in 2015, I was working on an educational project where we assess the literacy and numeracy skills of Nigerian children between the ages of 5 – 15. We were to assess children both in school and out of school. In preparing the assessments, teachers and educators alike were tasked to come up with a social studies question – any symbol/icon that represented Nigeria. The aim of this question was to test the social awareness of all children. It would also be an indicator of whether Nigerian children were aware of their social environment even without going to school. Lo and behold, we couldn’t come up with one single symbol that represented all parts of Nigeria except political figures – it was either the current president or past presidents. What this means is that only politics unites us as a country! We thought about Football as a sport but most iconic figures came from one region. We didn’t want to be accused of bias since the assessment was going to be a national assessment not a regional one. There were no National artistes, monuments, philosophers, Authors, Poets, buildings etc. that we could describe as truly “Nigerian”. Each one of them had a regional, religious or ethnic connotation.



Wow! Isn’t this dangerous? Even as I write this, I am trying to think of one personality I could say is truly national. Sadly, even the Nigerian president can’t be said to be national given his actions and antecedents. Is there a Nigerian symbol that if it goes up in flames today, everyone would be so gutted and become moved to save it the way France and Europe have done? Is there any symbol that is so personal to Nigerians that we want to protect at all cost? For me, it is deeply troubling because it shows that Nigeria is truly a geographical expression like many would say. We need to build the nation and I use the word “nation” deliberately. We need to come up with something aside politics that unites every Nigerian, that children in rural and hard to reach areas would be able to recognise and identify with. Something we can all defend without thinking of religion or ethnicity. We need something to call Nigeria’s own.

If you think there is one, I welcome your suggestion.


https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/04/23/what-is-nigerias-notre-damethrough-the-eyes-of-ides-ofune/

Quality education should be delivered in the language spoken at home, according to a UNESCO policy paper. International and regional learning assessments confirm that when home and school languages differ there is an adverse impact on test scores. In the world today, this standard is not met thereby limiting ability to develop foundations for learning. For children, being taught in a language other than their own can negatively impact their learning. Their parents may lack literacy skills which can then reinforce gaps in learning opportunities. Students from poor households who speak a different language at home are the worst affected. In a study in Guatemala in 2006, among minority poor students who speak a different language at home, only 38% learned the basics in mathematics while 77% of rich students who speak Spanish reached that level.


A study in Cameroon, between 2007 and 2012, showed that when a local language (Kom) was used as a medium of instruction in 12 schools for grades 1 to 3, learners showed a marked advantage in achievement in reading and comprehension compared with children taught only in English. The research also pointed out that Kom educated children scored twice as high on mathematics tests at the end of grade 3. Yet, these learning gains were not sustained when the students switched to English-only instruction in grade 4. The reason for this decreased gain was attributed to the early exit from a mother tongue environment. Evaluations from a six Year Primary Project in Ife, Nigeria, that used Yoruba as the medium of instruction for the six years of primary education, found out that students who switched to English after six years of mother tongue instruction performed better in English and in other subjects compared with those who did so after only three years.

Read more

https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/04/09/learning-in-mother-tongue-has-positive-benefits/

As a Nigerian living in the United Kingdom, I have followed and still following the Brexit process. First and foremost, as a former colony of the United Kingdom, Nigeria has always looked up to Britain. Our laws are almost a replica, English is our National language and recently, our Minister of Agriculture complained bitterly about Nigerians importing pizza from London through British Airways. So you see, I have no choice but to really pay attention to what’s going on with our former colonial masters. I also want to say that as a former “subject” of the Empire, I am sorely disappointed at the shambolic and haphazard way the Brexit process has been handled. I have always admired British politics and I am appalled at how difficult it is for the politicians to make a decision and stick to it. How difficult it is to show leadership and move the country forward? Nevertheless, despite my disappointment, I respect their doggedness in wanting to implement the decision of the referendum in the face of negative forecast. Nigerians by extension, Africans, can learn these three things from this whole Brexit process:


It’s OK to change course when things are not working well: when I woke up to the news that the UK voted to leave the European Union, I was gobsmacked. But, I was also proud of the British people. They felt that they were part of a Union that wasn’t working in their favour, and they actually did something about it no matter what other countries may think. They took matters in their own hands not minding what the future holds. In Nigeria and most African countries, the political structure is faulty, yet, the leaders vehemently refuse to do anything about it. For example, the Nigerian federal structure is top heavy – the federal government alone gets a whopping 53% of the national budget leaving the rest for the 36 states and 774 local governments to share. Apart from a few, most states do not generate enough internal revenue to keep their governments running. They run to the capital, Abuja, to get funds to pay for something as low as salaries for civil servants. This is abysmal! I still don’t understand the fixation of every president to keep the structure the way it is. The current structure is obviously slowing down our growth. Isn’t it high time we did something about it just as the British did? I believe if a situation is not working, then you change it. It’s as simple as that! Why can’t Nigerians do something about this unstable structure?


Do not blame the past but look toward the future: throughout this process, I haven’t heard of any reference made to the leaders who led the UK to join the European Union. I don’t hear complaints of “it’s our forefathers or leaders who made us join”. Instead, the British people realised that the current EU structure is not how it was when they joined and therefore, made a decision to leave. In 2019, Nigerians still make reference to our colonial past. We either blame the UK for colonisation or, we blame Lord Lugard for amalgamating the northern and southern protectorates into one Nigeria. Come on, Nigerians! Our past is our past and the negative deed has already been done. We should leave it behind where it is supposed to be and take responsibility for our present and future. The country Nigeria has been handed over to us, now let’s make tough decisions. Let’s decide whether to remain as one country, change the structure or go our separate ways. And for the Youth, I think it’s high time we stopped blaming the older politicians for our present predicament. If as a youth, you want power, then go for it at all cost. Blaming the “elders” who won’t relinquish power is not the best way forward. On either points, we should stop the blame game and get working!


There is no call for help from the international community: no matter how shambolic or disgraceful this process has been, I don’t hear the British calling for help from the Americans, the “Europeans” or the “Russians”. They are debating, arguing and forging ways to translate the referendum decision into actual action. I also don’t see any foreign consultants from the World Bank or IMF coming to assist with the implementation process, the Backstop or arrangements for a no deal outcome. Truthfully, I am sincerely sick and tired of Africans calling on the international community anytime there is a tough situation. That’s why although I categorically do not support El Rufai’s statement of foreigners leaving in body bags, I understand the spirit behind it. We should start coming up with solutions to our own problems and wean ourselves from this over reliance on international community anytime there is trouble. Be it in elections, economy, sports, development or any sector, we should learn to plough our way through tough situations no matter how “shambolic” it may be. It’s our continent, our country and nobody should tell us how to live in it. Yes, it may not be rosy and we will definitely make mistakes, but that’s exactly what is happening in the UK. They are not calling for help and no one is offering to help. The House of Commons is seriously tumbling and stumbling given that they cannot agree on any deal. Nigeria handled the ebola crisis very well and has become a model.The international community should please let Africa stumble and we too, should not go running to them for help every time.

https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/04/07/through-the-eyes-of-ides-ofune-three-lessons-nigeria-africa-can-learn-from-the-uk-brexit-process/

Deadline: May 23, 2019 by 04:00 (EDT)

Budget: Approximately 20 awards of a maximum of CA$20,000 each

Programmes: Agriculture and Environment, Inclusive Economies, Technology and Innovation

Topic: Development

Eligibility
This call is open to citizens of developing countries pursuing doctoral studies at a Canadian university.

Who can apply
To be eligible, you must meet the following requirements:

Continue reading...
https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/04/04/idrc-scholarship-available-for-doctoral-research-in-canada/

The OWSD Early Career Fellowship is a prestigious award of up to USD 50,000 offered to women who have completed their PhDs in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) subjects and are employed at an academic or scientific research institute in one of the listed Science and Technology Lagging Countries (STLCs). The OWSD Early Career fellows will be supported to establish an environment at their institution where they can maintain an international standard of research and attract scholars from all over the world to collaborate. The OWSD Early Career fellowships programme is administered by OWSD with funds generously provided by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada.

Deadline for submission: 30 April 2019.

All applications must be submitted online.

https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/04/01/owsd-early-career-fellowship-for-phd-graduates-in-stem/

As you navigate through your professional career, having a mentor makes the journey easier. Your mentor should guide you into making important decisions – such as which course to study, which university to attend, your first job, switching jobs, starting a business and your mental health generally. You have to choose the right person and not anyone performing well in their chosen fields. You have to be able to choose that right fit. These five tips should guide you:

Accessibility: the person should be accessible to you either through phone calls, emails or physically. If you need guidance on a particular area, he should be minutes away through whatever medium you want to use. This will help for easy guidance especially when you want an urgent response. Sometimes, you want to say a quick hello or basically chat about anything. Don’t choose someone you can’t reach at all due to one difficulty or the other. I always advise someone you can walk into their office and not travel thousand of miles. Access is key!

Extra mile: the person should be able to go the extra mile for you. In five professional lessons from a dying man, I wrote about Randy Pausch whose mentor was willing to stick out his neck to ensure that he got admission into the university of his choice even when he failed the first time. When you apply for a job, you want that mentor to write a great recommendation letter and if possible, call the organisation telling them how greatly skilled you are. That’s the kind of Mentor you want.

Best Interest: the person has to have your best interest at heart. She wants to see you succeed, get that great job, start that profitable and innovative business etc. You don’t want to choose some who is threatened by your success or threatened that you may someday get ahead of her. That person will limit you and guide you astray. It may even draw bad blood between the two of you and you don’t want that. Choose someone who genuinely loves your success and is wholeheartedly in support of you.

Read more: https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/03/19/what-to-look-out-for-when-choosing-a-professional-mentor/

First of all, his proposition is great if it can be implemented. However, my question is, “how will the leaders be held accountable for implementing the 25 year plan?” On the continent, accountability is as good as dead. People have not found ways of holding their leaders accountable for responsibilities. There is so much impunity in by government leaders that those governed do not have a “voice”. Even when they do, they are simply ignored. The few who have managed to speak loudly, are either jailed or killed. NGO transparency initiatives meant to hold government accountable have found methods of working with the government. As we know, doing this has a way of quietening down or softening the voice of confrontation needed to bring government leaders to account. Further, transparency works with the power of “shame”, but where the government is “shameless”, transparency alone cannot work.

Another side to accountability is the reverence Africans give to leaders and those in Authority. Most people resist the idea of questioning their religious leaders and traditional rulers. For example in Nigeria, it will be almost impossible to hold the Sultan of Sokoto accountable if he is a part of the conference and becomes responsible, in whatever capacity, for implementing the 25 year plan. Holding him accountable will be seen as going against aged traditions and religion. Such a leader is therefore not bound to implement any form of development given that he is unquestionable. Same goes for religious leaders who have some form of immunity and protection from religious books. Further, due to deep inequalities, people are unable to present alternatives or new crop of leaders for the conference. The current political leaders who seem to care less about the plight of the poor will again be presented as representatives.

Continue reading and share your thoughts

https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/03/17/proposition-by-ghanaian-pastor-duncan

In 2016, I was working on a household survey that collects data on literacy and numeracy skills of children. Since it was household based, we had to visit homes. Meeting people in their homes reveals intimate insights into how they live their everyday lives. Usually, in rural and hard to reach communities, people want to tell you their stories with the hope that you would do something about it. I came across a household that shook the foundations of my belief system.

In this particular household, there was a widow, her daughter and four children. Her daughter got recently divorced. The house was dirty and neglected. The poverty was so vivid that a dog lying down could hardly move or breathe because it was starving. It was basically skin and bones. As at the time I got there, they hadn’t had anything to eat. Assessing the children on their literacy and numeracy skill was just a formality as it was clear that they had never been to school.

As an education advocate, my solution to gender equality was usually “let’s educate girls”. However, coming across this case, to be honest, made me lost for words. I really couldn’t come up with a solution for this family. As I went on with the research, I realised that this family’s story was neither peculiar nor unique. It resonated in almost every household where there was no man present. In some parts of Nigeria, girls are not sent to school and are not also permitted to work for socio-cultural and religious reasons. Their duty is to stay at home, bear children and take care of the family. What then is the solution?

As a matter of urgency, this family needed food, clothing, shelter and other very basic amenities both in the short and long term. Going to school is obviously out of the question. I would have said learning a skill, but of what use will it be when they can’t work with it? How do you empower such women to, in the very least, survive. I used to scorn at states governments in the northern part of Nigeria who organise mass weddings for widows. After my experience, honestly speaking, I no longer do. The odds against women in such societies are stacked against them. They are not educated, they cannot work and are subject to easy divorce from selfish husbands who also refuse to take responsibility for the children.


Continue reading: https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/03/07/achieving-gender-equality-for-women-through-marriage-or-education/

This article is based on the assumption that funders, donors and policy makers want their projects and programmes to reach target audience, make impact and be monitored effectively. We do not need to debate about what type of methodologies work and why. The key challenge is to find out who is getting what as quickly as possible. To have maximum impact, this needs to be done rigorously and in a timely fashion. All actors working in the development sector should be committed to the principle of public accountability, and willing to take the risks inherent in asking sensitive questions about how public funds are used.

For example, Schools may have been built, but lack teachers or books. The schools built for the out-of-school children in some states in the northern part of Nigeria are reportedly empty of pupils or teachers. Clinics may be open, but staff may be abusive or absent. This process involves surveying non-beneficiaries too, to find out which groups may have been excluded.

Continue reading https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/03/07/why-civil-society-organisations-should-monitor-donor-and-publicly-funded-programmes/

This article is based on the assumption that funders, donors and policy makers want their projects and programmes to reach target audience, make impact and be monitored effectively. We do not need to debate about what type of methodologies work and why. The key challenge is to find out who is getting what as quickly as possible. To have maximum impact, this needs to be done rigorously and in a timely fashion. All actors working in the development sector should be committed to the principle of public accountability, and willing to take the risks inherent in asking sensitive questions about how public funds are used.

For example, Schools may have been built, but lack teachers or books. The schools built for the out-of-school children in some states in the northern part of Nigeria are reportedly empty of pupils or teachers. Clinics may be open, but staff may be abusive or absent. This process involves surveying non-beneficiaries too, to find out which groups may have been excluded.

Continue reading: https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/03/07/why-civil-society-organisations-should-monitor-donor-and-publicly-funded-programmes/

Ask any middle class Nigerian, the first answer they give when discussing child care cost is school fees. School fees are skyrocketing from early childhood care, primary school to secondary school. Public primary school education is free in most states where parents pay little or nothing. Although entry age into public primary school is 6 years, parents are left to themselves before that age to make preparations for early childhood care.

That the Nigerian public education school system is broken is no news. There are many challenges: not enough schools to go round, overcrowded classrooms, low supply of school inputs such as textbooks, libraries, and laboratories. All of these then translate into low quality education. What is gaining traction is that majority of parents who want good quality education turn to the private sector albeit at a very high cost. In Lagos state for example, there are more private schools than public schools. A World Bank researchputs Lagos state as the largest private school market in the world. In a particular local government area, the private sector is the leading provider of education in both primary and secondary schools. The research further states that a whopping 91 percent of pre-primary, primary and secondary schools were provided by the private sector with most of them being operated as private businesses. This is the same scenario in most states in Nigeria.

Private schools in themselves are not bad as they exist all over the world. However, they must not become the first choice of quality schooling for the average parent. The problem is that, as businesses, private schools are at liberty to set school fees and any other fees associated with schooling. How do parents finance this high cost of education? What is the impact of this trend on socioeconomic development in terms of equality where the rich go to quality private schools while the poor are left with the choice of going to so called low fee private schools where the quality is questionable.

Continue reading ... https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/03/05/through-the-eyes-of-ides-ofune-quality-education-at-what-cost/

Last week, I came across a video on Randy Pausch where I learned about successful living. Randy Pauch was a computer science Professor in the USA who delivered a lecture called “Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams.” It was his last lecture after he learned that he had pancreatic cancer and had few months to live. He decided to give this last lecture as a legacy to his children and as a way of encouraging people to live their best lives. I read his book and decided to share some of the lessons I learned. Enjoy!

Address the Elephant in the room: there may be times when you find yourself in an uncomfortable situation where there are issues that have not been addressed. This could be due to the seriousness, the negative connotation or the discomfort such issues bring up. The best thing to do is to address them no matter how difficult they may be. Just as Randy Pausch says “when there is an elephant in the room, introduce it.” What I have learned is that when you introduce the elephant, it helps everyone in the long run and eventually, people will be glad you did.


There are no impossibilities: Although this is a cliché that has been used several times, it is true. No matter the obstacle that may be in front of you, take a step of faith. Sometimes the obstacles may seem too big or people might say it’s impossible but you could be the person to make it possible. I remember during my undergraduate studies, a senior colleague told me that it was impossible to graduate with a first class given that I had no previous knowledge of the course. According to my colleague, a “beginner” as it was called then, had never achieved such a feat in the department. Well, yours truly did it and the rest they say is history. Randy says “the brick walls are there for a reason. They are not there to keep us out. They are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something.” How badly do you want to fulfill that dream?

Continue reading https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/03/03/five-professional-life-lessons-from-a-dying-man/

Deadline Friday, 15 March 2019

Conference Date: Wednesday, 19 June to Thursday, 20 June 2019* Center for Global Development, Washington, DC
Center for Global Development invites you to submit a paper for, or express your interest in attending, the Research on Improving Systems of Education (RISE) Programme Annual Conference.

Countries made dramatic progress on schooling goals with systems that were coherent around the expansion of schooling. To achieve learning goals, systems of basic education need to construct relationships of accountability and support that are coherent around expanding learning for all—and these do not currently exist in many countries. RISE is seeking to diagnose why such incoherencies exist, and to propose therapeutic solutions that are evidentially supported, analytically grounded, and contextually adapted.

Demand for education –What are stakeholders demanding from education systems? Can stakeholders provide demand-side accountability that drives up education quality?
Learning inequalities and social mobility – How should we measure learning to draw meaningful comparisons across groups and countries, and over time? Where do learning inequalities exist, and why? How, and to what extent, can more equitable learning contribute to better life outcomes?
Inside the classroom – What is being taught in classrooms? Which curricula and teaching methods are proving in/effective?
Innovation – Are education systems generating, evaluating, and scaling innovations in learning, and if not, why not?
The 2019 RISE Conference will cover both diagnostic and therapeutic themes. Presentations will draw on research undertaken in existing RISE countries—Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Tanzania, and Vietnam—plus a new RISE Country Research Team. In addition, we are issuing an open call for papers from researchers working on these and any other developing countries.

Submissions are invited in any area of research relating to education systems, although papers in the following areas are particularly welcome:

Authors should submit a full-length paper, not an abstract by noon UK GMT on Friday, 15 March 2019 to rise@bsg.ox.ac.uk. Ideally, the paper will be at (or close to) the stage of submitting to a working paper series. More preliminary work will be considered for inclusion, if space allows. There is no maximum or minimum word limit, or required format.

https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/03/05/rise-annual-conference-2019-call-for-papers/

A search for the most innovative EdTech companies across the world, targeting teaching and learning in the developing world, refugee, displacement and socially disadvantaged contexts.
30 start-ups will be selected to join be in Dubai from the 22-24 March 2019 to take part in three days of pitching, networking and EdTech focused discussions.
12 will pitch again and 6 semi-finalists will take the stage for the chance to win 3 prizes of USD$25,000.
Learn how to create and deliver a winning pitch and tell the most compelling impact story.
Deep dive into the current state of the EdTech market to find out what EdTech investors are looking for, and what EdTech products education ministers and their educators are buying.
Hear from other start-ups who will share the challenges of scaling globally and the lessons they learned on the way.
Find out what teachers expect EdTech to do for them.
Enjoy world class networking.
By participating in this contest (“Contest“), each company or person who applies or is nominated (“Applicant”) accepts and agrees to be bound by the terms and conditions.I

Eligibility

To be eligible, an Applicant:

https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/02/08/win-the-usd25000-prize-for-edtech-innovations-in-developing-countries/

For the period 16 – 31 January, 2019, there were a total number of 59 terrorist attacks with 555 terrorist related deaths according to the African Centre for the Study and Research on Terrorism (ACSRT). 283 people died directly from these terrorist attacks while the remaining 272 deaths were recorded during counter terrorism operations by security forces. 307 people who died were members of terrorist groups while security forces and Civilian casualties were 25% (140) and 20% (108) respectively.

The countries most affected by terrorism are: Mali, Somalia, Nigeria, Burkina Faso and Niger in decreasing order. The Sahel region recorded the highest number of terrorist attacks with 37 incidents out of the total number of 59 incidents recorded. The Sahel region also suffered from the highest number of civilian deaths with 77% and the lowest percentage of terrorist deaths of 31%. In general, civilians and security forces received the most targets from terrorist groups with each category recording 22% each of the total attacks. International organisations were not left out suffering about 8% of the total number.

Terrorist groups in Africa continue to use mostly Small Arms and Light Weapons to carry out their attacks. They also employed improvised explosive devices (IED) in 18 out of the 59 attacks during the period with Al-Shabaab terrorist group making use of these weapons the most. The report further shows that terrorist attacks are escalating and becoming more sophisticated as they employ different means during their operations. Nevertheless, counter terrorism operations have gained momentum and continue to neutralise a significant number of terrorists in Somalia, Nigeria, Mali and the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt.

Read more: https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2019/02/08/mali-somalia-nigeria-burkina-faso-and-niger-most-affected-by-terrorism-in-africa/

I came across this tweet today and decided to pen down my thoughts. “The (highly educated, career) women whom we hope will reproduce are the ones who are NOT reproducing – Nickolas Zill @DIFI_Qatar Expert Group Meeting”.

This statement caught my attention because I was talking about it this morning with a colleague. There is just little or no support for women who are in the workplace or in school especially for those who are pregnant or with children.

As a student for example, I am expected to cater to my young child by myself and still perform as my colleagues who do not have such responsibilities. No support whatsoever from the school, the society or the government. In Nigeria for example, the longest leave a nursing mother returning to work gets is at most 4 months and after that she is completely left on her own. Really, what can 4 months do for a baby. He barely knows his mother and the woman has barely recovered from the gruelling and uncomfortable 9 months of pregnancy.

We know that the burden of taking care of children rests largely with the woman, yet no support. When I see babies as little as 3 months old being kept in creche or nurseries because the mother has to return to work, I honestly think it’s unfair and cruel to both the child and the mother – there are so many adverse consequences. From my experience working in the education sector, this among many more reasons is why some cultures don’t send their girl-child to school (It is not a valid excuse but it is worth taking a pause and thinking about it). When she starts giving birth, which she will eventually do, who will care for the children and how will it be done? I have seen many women leave work completely or not further their studies due to this challenge.

I really think that society should recognise women as women not as men. This means that women get pregnant for 9 months, nurse babies for about a year and this cycle will be repeated on an average of 3 – 4 times in their lifetime. If women are expected to contribute to the society due to the numerable benefits not just economic benefits, then they should be supported at every stage of this cycle.

The solution is not to treat women as men, or to ignore this aspect of their lives completely or women acting like super women (I can have it all at the same time and do it all by myself). From my observation, women who act like super women have an array of support behind them – wealthy partners, a great salary where they can employ as many nannies as they want, an extended family support system etc. But we know that not all women can have access to these sort of support. In my opinion, women should not shy away from something that is an integral part of them. Women shouldn’t be forced to choose between school, careers and something as natural as having children.

In creating an all inclusive and equal society that works for all and not just a few, I believe that society and the government should work together to support women at every stage of their lives especially at the reproductive years in order to create a society that works for all and not just those who can afford it.

https://desertbloomadvisory.com/2018/12/12/todays-dilemma-of-being-a-woman/