Trend of <i>Cryptosporidium</i>Infection among Children below 24 Months in an Informal Urban Settlement, Kenya

Cryptosporidium infection is estimated to cause 2.9 million diarrheal cases yearly among children aged under 24 months in sub-Saharan Africa. Studies have shown long-term climatic variations can affect infectious diseases. The burden of cryptosporidiosis in rural areas of sub-Saharan Africa is well characterized. However, the trend of Cryptosporidium infection is not known, especially in informal urban settings. This study therefore sought to determine cryptosporidiosis trends, and further explore the association between year and Cryptosporidium infection among children below 24 months in Kibera urban informal settlement in Kenya. Data collected by the Kenya Medical Research Institute longitudinal study in Tabitha clinic in Kibera from 2009 to 2015 were used. At least 3000 children aged < 24 months receive free health care at the clinic. In the longitudinal study, children presenting with diarrhea were eligible for stool sample collection (n = 477), out of which 421 stool samples were tested using TaqMan™ Array Card (TAC) polymerase chain reaction panel that included a target for Cryptosporidium genus. Data for the 421 children were included in the analysis. Logistic regression was used to explore the difference between the seven years and cryptosporidiosis. Overall, the pooled data indicated that 23.5% of the children who were tested had Cryptosporidium infection, with the highest proportions of Cryptosporidium-positive cases observed in 2015 (45.2%). The logistic regression results also indicated that children who were tested in the year 2015 were more likely to have Cryptosporidium infection (OR = 3.39;95% CI: 1.44 - 7.96;p = 0.005) than those in 2009. Watery stool was also found to be an important symptom of cryptosporidiosis. There was a high prevalence of Cryptosporidium infection among young children, especially in the most recent year. Routine testing of Cryptosporidium infection using molecular methods, constant monitoring and identification of the infection sources is therefore necessary towards reducing the disease burden in the low resource settings.

Policy and research frame of the coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)pandemic:reflections on urban informality

How has the informality of urban slums exposed a gap in policy formulation and research questions in the wake of the coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)pandemic?This paper seeks to identify the appropriate questions and policy frame that would assist future researchers and policymakers on the subject of pandemics in densely populated urban settlements.The authors argue that the nexus between asking the appropriate questions and developing appropriate policy response measures during a pandemic can significantly impact the outcome of the response.The paper examines how the government of Kenya's response to the COVID-19 pandemic reveals a deep-rooted socio-economic and cultural inequality when"blanket"policies are adopted without taking into consideration the tnique dynamics characterizing the society.The findings show that the effectiveness of implementing COVID-19 containment policies such as lockdowns,the cession of movement,working from home,distance learning,and social distancing are affected by other factors such as the nature of jobs,one's income levels,where someone lives,cultural beliefs,access to water,sanitation,intemet,and medical facilities.This means that a significant number of people within the society experience a double tragedy from the pandemic and impact of government response measures.Yet most of the existing literature has focused on the causes,spread,and impact of the pandemic on health institutions,economies,and public health with little emphasis on the impact on policy measures especially on the vulnerable segments of the society.This paper,therefore,looks at the question of how the various public health intervention strategies disrupt or construct the livelihood of the already complex informal settlement.It provides policymakers and researchers with a number of questions that can frame policy and research during a pandemic with important consideration to urban informality.

On the Edge of Malfeasance： Informal African Immigrant Traders in the/ohannesburg Inner City, South Africa

Admittedly, the stratospheric rise of Informal African Immigrant Traders （IAIT） in the Johannesburg inner city within a climate of discrimination, harassment, hostility, and xenophobia has engendered survival strategies which border on the illegal and underground. Based on an in-depth interview study of 40 IAIT, operating in the Johannesburg inner city and specialising in clothes, cellphone and accessories, household goods, fruits and vegetables, and a courier company, this paper posits that the registered and unregistered IAIT operate side by side with the latter operating from undesignated sites, either bribing or deceitful evading the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police （JMP）. Is this the characteristic of IAIT in the Johannesburg inner city？ Ostensibly, the success of challenging the institutional regulatory regime points to the possibility of African immigrant traders existing on the edge of impropriety or lawlessness. To this end, there is a need for comprehensive policy initiatives starting from the national and cascading to the provincial and municipality levels that will effectively address and manage urban informality, including the activities of the IAIT, failing which these will fuel operations outside the regulatory regimes and the mushrooming of the underground economic activities.

Discussion of Random and Informal Settlements in Damascus

Toadies cities are accumulating the global population in their territories, occurring formally and informally. The increase of urban informality is the most significant trend shaping the 21st century world. Furthermore, the urban informality ＂theory＂ should be considered in urbanization courses and development studies. With the rapid economic market development, changes mapped the major Syrian cities. Damascus is in the midst of a profound transformation of architectural and planning changes. Damascus urbanization is crowded simultaneously with informal settlements. In consequence, a detonation of urban sprawl placing random districts and informal settlements around the city （elmokhalafat ＆ elmanatiq elashwaiya） Damascus urban informality is a way of supplying shelters and houses as a fundamental human need. The study hereby high-lights the informal phenomenon and its effects on the city at present through analytical study showing solutions and asking questions, and, finally, deals with informality in an urbanized way with self-help constructs and upgrades to aid the low income and urban poor.

Does Tenure Security Reduce Disaster Risk? A Comparative Study of the Nairobi Settlements of Kibera and Kawangware

While scholarship suggests that improving tenure security and housing significantly reduces disaster risk at the household level within urban settings,this assertion has not been adequately tested.Tenure security can be conceived as being composed of three interrelated and overlapping forms:tenure security as determined by legal systems;de facto tenure security;and tenure security as perceived by residents.This article traces the relationship between tenure security,the quality of housing,and disaster risk on the basis of a mixed methods comparative case study of the settlements of Kawangware and Kibera in Nairobi.Although the findings suggest that owner-occupancy is associated with the structural integrity of dwellings to a greater extent than tenantship,no association was found between the length of occupancy by households and the structural integrity of the dwelling.Moreover,tenantship is not found to be closely associated with fires and flooding affecting the dwelling as extant scholarship would suggest.Formal ownership is linked with greater investment and upgrading of property with significant implications for disaster risk.Our findings highlight the complex relationship between tenure security and disaster risk in urban informal settlements and provide impetus for further investigation.

Summary of the Seminar Held by the China Urban Planning Information Network and the China Urban Planning Society

The China Urban Planning Informa-tion Network and the China Urban Plan-ning Society held a joint seminar in Fushun,Liaoning Province,on July 12—16,1988.The major topics of the seminar includedthe paid use of urban land and the im-provement and reform of city planning.The seminar discussed the