NIGERIANS PARTICIPATION IN 2015 ELECTION

2015 JIMI AGBAJE ELECTION

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT SELLING TO MILLENNIALS.

We live in a socially-connected world. At any given time, hundreds of thousands of people are either tweeting, making a Facebook post, watching a YouTube video or engaging in one of the numerous internet activities. Not surprisingly, majority of internet users are millennials.

William Strauss & Neil Howe are widely credited with naming the millennials in 1987 in the book

Generations: The History of America’s Future 1584-2069.  Demographers have had diverse views on the age boundaries of millennials. Business Insider claims Millennials age range is from 1982-2004; Census Bureau’s 1982-2000; PEW Research Centre 1981-1997; and Goldman Sachs Global Investment Reach describes millennials as anyone born between 1980 and 2000. There are about 92 million millennials and some of the behavioral characteristics of millennials include that they are more predisposed to access than ownership. This has given rise to the sharing economy on which businesses like UBER, AIRBNB have built their business model and made profit.

The findings of a research conducted The Impact of YouTube and Blogs on the purchase decision of Millennials by Ayobami G. Olajide on millennials in Covenant University. The study shows the behavioral dynamics of Millennials and how they respond to brand portrayal on YouTube and Blogs.

 

1. Millennials are not Brand Loyal: The research showed that most of them would not buy a brand with negative reviews. 52% of respondents who strongly disagree that they would buy a brand with negative review. Also, 53% of them would buy an unfamiliar product with spectacular product reviews. This shows that millennials are not brand loyal and they prefer functionality over name tag.

 

2. Millennials rely heavily on Reviews while making purchase decision:

The statistics gathered have uncovered a trend that brands need to take as instrumental in pivoting business operations. Brands need to focus on getting good review and need to be more intentional about how their brands are portrayed because 82% of respondents agree that reviews are major determinants in influencing their purchase decision.

3. Millennials think highly of brands on YouTube and Blogs:

The research findings establish that millennials perceive brands heavily represented on YouTube as superior brands because 73% strongly agree and agree to this notion while 57% strongly agree that brands heavily represented on blogs are superior brands. What this means for businesses is that they should invest in maintaining their online reputation on YouTube and Blogs because millennials equate YouTube and Blogs portrayal to actual brand representation.

 

4. Millennials actively seek out YouTube and Blogs during purchase consideration:

 

It has been established that millennials seek out information sources to aid their purchase decision making process. YouTube and Blogs have been identified as a go-to source in the decision making process. 32% of respondents strongly agree that they would seek out blog review over advertisements while 31% agree that they would seek out a blog review over advertisement. The finding is similar in the case of YouTube as 29% and 40% strongly agree and agree that they would seek out product demonstration over advertisement.

Therefore, there could be a correlation between the representation of brands on YouTube and Blogs and their overall patronage.

 

____________________________________________________________________________

Brands are encouraged to pay attention to their company’s image on social media spaces and their portrayal on YouTube and Blogs as it can affect their profitability positively or negatively.

It is also important to note that millennials are information-driven buyers so brands must take note to adopt a content-focused approach to marketing to millennials like creation of product demonstration videos, explainer videos, influencer marketing and advocacy, blog posts, etc. rather than adopting traditional marketing models.

 

Olajide G. Ayobami

ROLE OF INDIGENOUS MODEL OF COMMNICATION IN RURAL DEVELOMENT PROJECTS

This study shows that for rural development to take place, the indigenous mean of communication have to be put into consideration because without effective communication, there can never be effective development .This indicate that the modern mass media used in developed area can’t be used in rural areas when carrying out development projects. Development programmes by the government in the past have failed due to the fact that the appropriate media for the dissemination of these programmes were not used, making the programmes futile, and a waste. Therefore, for rural development to occur without ending up a failure, the role of traditional media should not be used be under emphasized or looked down on. Just the same way the traditional media cannot be used to pass across information to the urban dwellers because it will be a waste of time, so also, the media cannot be used in the rural areas.

Ekpo Mfonobong Eyo

FEMALE PARTICIPATION IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

 

The involvement of women in the several industrial spheres of life is fast becoming a ubiquitous trend. Over the past recent years, more women than usual have been in inducted into the field of Science and Technology.  Regardless of this though, at the moment there is not a single country on record in which women make up to 50 percent of the total participation in their Science and Technological sector.

There are a few identifiable reasons for this gender gap. The most prominent being the still existent mindset behind the role of women in the society. In times past, it women were confined to domestic activities. There was a general assumption that women are far less intelligent than men and hence won’t be able to achieve much in such fields as Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. Although there has been a considerable deterioration of this belief since the advent of feminism, the shadows of its aftermath still linger over the women today. A number of them are not confident enough in themselves to put themselves out there. They would much instead opt for safer career paths; paths that they have been believed to be suited for.

Another reason why women are not prominent figures in the field is that involvement in such careers requires a lot of time. Science and Technology are such that without constant practice and adequate dedication, one cannot stand out or thrive. Since women are the designated home care-takers, they have little time to engage in such activities. Chores such as cooking, raising children, cleaning and washing for the family tends to eat a huge chunk of their daily time and a woman who doesn’t perform these duties as frequently as is required is regarded as irresponsible by most societies and so in order to avoid such tags, most women will rather stay away from the segment.

There also exists a problem with the employers in the field. There still exists a bias in gender when it comes to a person’s employability. A lot of companies and industries regard men as “more able” and would, regardless of the apparent differences in their actual abilities, much instead employ a man over women.

To solve this problem, awareness among women is mandatory. This should include success stories of the many women that have already left their mark through Science and Technology in the world. Programs for training girls and helping them acquire the necessary skills set for the jobs should also be instituted, and young girls in the society should be encouraged to participate. Girls should be encouraged to take science courses from high school so that they may be able to perceive the field as less threatening from an early stage. Parents and members of the society should also be advised to encourage the girls in the community to participate.

Another thing which can be done is that the government should make laws about the minimum percentage of female staff there should be in every company and industry. That way, employees will get to observe the competence of women first hand and even wish to employ more women than necessary.

Fortunately, some programs and organization already exist that are designed to encourage women to participate more in the field. Such programs include Girls Who Code, National Girls Collaborate Project, Million Women Mentors, Association for Women in Science and so many others. These associations go round to empower and encourage women to participate more in the field.

Adeleke Praise

Entrepreneurs: The Godfathers of Philanthropy

The world is facing various global stigmas like unemployment, poor health care, an addiction which comes with disadvantages like poverty, hunger, poor education, etc. These problems make people tend to be independent because they can’t afford to wait for something to happen, they make something happen to cause them to start up something no matter how little to impact lives the way they can make them Entrepreneurs.

These same group of people doesn’t forget their beginnings, knowing fully well that countless people are going through what they went through during their hard times, so they decide to give back to humankind using their money, ideas, influence, etc. to engage in the act of Philanthropy.

A school drops out with a current net worth of  $84.2 billion according to Forbes; Bill Gates the co-founder of Microsoft now pays most of his time on philanthropy running the Bill& Melinda Gates Foundation with his wife. The foundation issues grants for initiatives and programs across the world, focusing on agricultural development, emergency relief, global libraries, urban poverty, global health and education; donating a sum of $27 billion across United Nations programmes like United Nations Children’s Fund, World Health Organisation, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and The Rotary Foundation.

With a generosity index of 35% alongside a lifetime donation of $21.5 billion, the entrepreneur Warren Buffet is known to be one of the most charitable people in the world, he donated 85% of his wealth, a sum of $31 billion in 2006  to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, as well other foundations set up by family members.

The founder of Soros Fund Management, currently serving as the chairman of the Open Society Foundations, George Soros heads a network of foundations he founded in 1979 and has donated $8 billion in these foundations that focus on International causes, community development, social services, health, and education.

The James Bond of philanthropy, Charles Francis Feeney an Atlantic retail magnate has donated $6.3 billion in his lifetime into education, science, healthcare and civil-rights causes across different countries like the United States of America, Vietnam, and Bermuda.

A survivor of prostate and mouth cancer with a generosity index of 128 %, Jon Huntsman Sr. as a result of his near-death experience established the Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah that focuses on donating to colleges and cancer- research centers. Also, he donated 50% of his wealth to the Buffett’s Giving Pledge to support and accelerate problem-solving around the world.

Co-founder of Intel now runs the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, this foundation aims to make an impact in environmental conservation, patient care, science and he has given $5 billion so far to chase this vision.

During the plague of Ebola, Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla donated $25 million, and through Silicon Valley Community Foundation, he gave $75 million to San Franciso General Hospital. Also, Bay Area schools were given $120 million to the pair and $100 million worth of Facebook to a New Jersey public-school system.

“No man can become rich without himself enriching others in ways those people can never pay back,” these Entrepreneurs are a vivid example of this quote by Andrew Carnegie.

Naomi Olotu

CHILD MARRIAGE IN NIGERIA

The cultural practice of child marriage is one of the strong hazards to the rights of children in modern times with its recurring effects being very common in many parts of West Africa. Article 1 of the Convention on the Rights of Child describes child/ early marriage as the marriage of a child below 18 years.

According to United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), both boys and girls are victims of child marriage, but girls are affected in much larger numbers and higher intensity. Every year, more than 1.5 million girls from all over the world become child brides, and most of them are just starting their adolescent years. West Africa contributes the highest number to this statistics with 49 percent of girls married before they clock 18.

The Secretary-General of West African Civil Society Forum (WACSOF), Auwal Musa Rafsanjani said their sensitization and dialogue programme in six West African countries; Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso, Niger, Guinea, Nigeria, and Mali revealed that poverty was a critical factor contributing to child marriage phenomenon in the continent. He said that,

“It is a common reason why parents encourage a child to marry. Poor countries and families often have few resources to support healthy alternatives such as schooling for girls. Where poverty is acute, a young girl may be regarded as an economic burden, and her marriage to a much older sometimes even elderly man is believed to benefit the child and her family both financially and socially”

Another reason for child marriage is as a result of limited education opportunities, inadequate infrastructure, and lack of transport, therefore concerns about girls’ safety while travelling to school significantly contribute to keeping girls out of school and therefore tend to favor child marriage.

Although there is widespread awareness of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2006 (PCMA) and the illegality of child marriage, individually, people feel that the traditions and norms are stronger than the law and the institutions and rarely report cases. On top of this, there is limited capacity among officials and lack of willingness to go against community decisions, since officials are themselves part of the community.

Also, child marriage is partly because Nigeria is very much divided on religious grounds. The South is mainly Christian, and the North is principally Islam. So, even though the country as a whole is ‘bound’ by Federal Law and the Nigerian Constitution, some Northern states in Nigeria subscribe to Sharia law, at least their version of it. In Nigeria, the federal law prohibits the marriage of persons that are below eighteen.

However, the states in Nigeria that implement Sharia law do not prohibit child marriage. It create a clash of laws and principles, but not to the point where the federal government feels the need to intervene. Child marriage is simply a traditional convention that has been allowed to subsist within Nigeria. There was a story that made news in 2014 about a 14 years old girl, Wasila Umaru who poisoned and killed her 35 year old husband and 2 of his friends.

Addressing this issue effectively should become a high priority in the overall efforts for the development and progress of West African region, although several international bodies have come up to form part of the framework to address the problem, the problem still persists as a major contributor to the various challenges which young girls and women in general face within West Africa.

The effects of this could be traumatizing to these girls as some of them face violence, abuse and exposure to HIV/AIDS, VVF (Vesico Vagina Fitsula) and other sexually transmitted diseases because they have fewer skills and less negotiating power. Nearly 13 per cent of married girls between 15-19 years of age experience sexual violence by their husbands compared with 10 per cent of women experiencing such violence between the age group of 30-39.

Also, after contacting this infections and disease, these girls are left alone. Therefore, it is important for the states to agree on a specific minimum age limit for a girl to be given out to marriage.

The Secretary-General of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament, Dr. Cheick Dansoko said issue of child marriage should be treated as criminal offence, describing it as evil to deny a girl child of her rights enshrined in the law of the land by giving her out for marriage at a tender age as a sex slave to a man. He also added that leaders in the continent must go beyond rhetoric, and take action on the matter, promising to look into it with keen interest.

The practice of child marriage is very prevalent in Nigeria, and due to the effects above and consequences, the government should ensure strict laws on early/child marriage notwithstanding the religion or tribe to reduce or eliminate this enormous issue from our society.

Aderoju Adedunni Oluwadamilola

Agricultural Productivity: the heart cry of Agriculture

Developed countries have been able to successfully progress from just planting of seeds to now manufacturing bigger things like tea, wool, silk, etc. The Green Revolution benefited most regions of the world especially East Asia and the Pacific.

Agricultural productivity is the measure of the amount of agricultural output produced for a given amount of inputs, such as an index of multiple outputs divided by an index of various data. Agricultural productivity has been proven to be the turning point of Agriculture including:

Increased research into plant breeding which also involves the study of the unique soil types in Africa because it is vital. According to the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research, a dollar invested in such research by the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research consortium of agricultural research centre’s is estimated to yield six dollars in benefits.

Agricultural Productivity: the heart cry of Agriculture

Developed countries have been able to successfully progress from just planting of seeds to now manufacturing bigger things like tea, wool, silk, etc. The Green Revolution benefited most regions of the world especially East Asia and the Pacific.
Agricultural productivity is the measure of the amount of agricultural output produced for a given amount of inputs, such as an index of multiple outputs divided by an index of various data. Agricultural productivity has been proven to be the turning point of Agriculture including:
Increased research into plant breeding which also involves the study of the unique soil types in Africa because it is vital. According to the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research, a dollar invested in such research by the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research consortium of agricultural research centers is estimated to yield six dollars in benefits.
Irrigation is also very vital, with the growing effects of climate change on weather patterns, more watering will be needed. According to research average yields in irrigated farms are 90% higher than those of nearby rain-fed farms.
Due to the fact soil is deteriorating, fertilizer use must increase. The people in authority must ensure the right type of fertilizers are available at the right times and are affordable too. Fertilizer education lessens the environmental impact, and an analysis of such training programs in East Africa concluded they boosted average incomes by 61%.
Improvement of rural infrastructures like roads is essential to raising productivity through reductions in shipping costs and loss of perishable produce. Better incentives provided for farmers, including cuts in food subsidies, could boost output by nearly 5%.
Information Technology can help support better crop, fertilizer and pesticide selection. It also improves land and water management, provides access to weather information and many more. According to research, merely giving farmers information about crop prices in different markets has increased their power to bargain also Esoko, a provider of mobile crop information services, estimates they can boost incomes by 10-30%.
Adoption of genetically modified crops in Africa remains limited. Africa’s rapid population growth, high-yield genetically modified plants that are resistant to weather shocks give Africa the chance to address food insecurity. An analysis of more than 100 studied found that genetically modified crops reduced pesticide use by 37%, increased yields by 22% and farmer profit by 68%.
The bottom line is that farm productivity plays a vital role in the agricultural development in Nigeria.

Naomi Olotu

Reasons Why People Patronize Mass Communication

​