Application of Optimization Principle in Landmark University Project Selection under Multi-Period Capital Rationing Using Linear and Integer Programming

The current structure of Landmark University (LU) was induced by raising a generation of solution providers through a qualitative and life-applicable training system that focuses on values and creative knowledge by making it more responsive and relevant to the modern-day demands of demonstration, industrialization and development. The challenge facing Landmark University is the question of which of its numerous projects they should invest to give maximum output with minimum input. In this paper, we maximize the Net Present Value (NPV) and maintain the net discount cash overflow of each project per period as contained and extracted as the secondary data of cash inflows of the Landmark University (LU) monthly financial statement and annual reports from 2012 to 2017 of which the documents have been regrouped as small and large scale projects as many enterprises make more use of the trial-and-error method and as such firms have been finding it difficult in allocating scarce resources in a manner that will ensure profit maximization and/or cost minimization with a simple and accurate decision making by the company through an optimization principle in selecting LU project under multi-period capital rationing using linear programming (LP) and integer programming (IP). The annual net cash flow which is the difference between the cash inflows and cash outflows during each period for the project was estimated and recorded. The discount factors were estimated at cost of capital of 10% for each cash flow per period with the corresponding NPV at 10% which revealed that the optimal decision achieves maximum returns of $110 × 102 and this assisted the project manager to select a large number of the variable projects that can maximize the profit which is far better than relying on an ad-hoc judgmental approach to project investment that could have cost 160 × 102 for the same project. Sensitivity analysis on the project parameters are also carried out to test the extent to which project selection is sensitive to changes in the parameters of the system revealed that a little reduction and or addition of reduced cost by certain amount or percentages to its corresponding coefficient in the objective function effect no changes in the shadow prices with solution values for variables (x1), (x4), (x5) and the optimal objective function.

A Novel Insertion Solution for the Travelling Salesman Problem

The studypresents theHalfMax InsertionHeuristic (HMIH) as a novel approach to solving theTravelling SalesmanProblem (TSP). The goal is to outperform existing techniques such as the Farthest Insertion Heuristic (FIH) andNearest Neighbour Heuristic (NNH). The paper discusses the limitations of current construction tour heuristics,focusing particularly on the significant margin of error in FIH. It then proposes HMIH as an alternative thatminimizes the increase in tour distance and includes more nodes. HMIH improves tour quality by starting withan initial tour consisting of a ‘minimum’ polygon and iteratively adding nodes using our novel Half Max routine.The paper thoroughly examines and compares HMIH with FIH and NNH via rigorous testing on standard TSPbenchmarks. The results indicate that HMIH consistently delivers superior performance, particularly with respectto tour cost and computational efficiency. HMIH’s tours were sometimes 16% shorter than those generated by FIHand NNH, showcasing its potential and value as a novel benchmark for TSP solutions. The study used statisticalmethods, including Friedman’s Non-parametric Test, to validate the performance of HMIH over FIH and NNH.This guarantees that the identified advantages are statistically significant and consistent in various situations. Thiscomprehensive analysis emphasizes the reliability and efficiency of the heuristic, making a compelling case for itsuse in solving TSP issues. The research shows that, in general, HMIH fared better than FIH in all cases studied,except for a few instances (pr439, eil51, and eil101) where FIH either performed equally or slightly better thanHMIH. HMIH’s efficiency is shown by its improvements in error percentage (δ) and goodness values (g) comparedto FIH and NNH. In the att48 instance, HMIH had an error rate of 6.3%, whereas FIH had 14.6% and NNH had20.9%, indicating that HMIH was closer to the optimal solution. HMIH consistently showed superior performanceacross many benchmarks, with lower percentage error and higher goodness values, suggesting a closer match tothe optimal tour costs. This study substantially contributes to combinatorial optimization by enhancing currentinsertion algorithms and presenting a more efficient solution for the Travelling Salesman Problem. It also createsnew possibilities for progress in heuristic design and optimization methodologies.

Deep Transfer Learning Models for Mobile-Based Ocular Disorder Identification on Retinal Images

Mobile technology is developing significantly.Mobile phone technologies have been integrated into the healthcare industry to help medical practitioners.Typically,computer vision models focus on image detection and classification issues.MobileNetV2 is a computer vision model that performs well on mobile devices,but it requires cloud services to process biometric image information and provide predictions to users.This leads to increased latency.Processing biometrics image datasets on mobile devices will make the prediction faster,but mobiles are resource-restricted devices in terms of storage,power,and computational speed.Hence,a model that is small in size,efficient,and has good prediction quality for biometrics image classification problems is required.Quantizing pre-trained CNN(PCNN)MobileNetV2 architecture combined with a Support Vector Machine(SVM)compacts the model representation and reduces the computational cost and memory requirement.This proposed novel approach combines quantized pre-trained CNN(PCNN)MobileNetV2 architecture with a Support Vector Machine(SVM)to represent models efficiently with low computational cost and memory.Our contributions include evaluating three CNN models for ocular disease identification in transfer learning and deep feature plus SVM approaches,showing the superiority of deep features from MobileNetV2 and SVM classification models,comparing traditional methods,exploring six ocular diseases and normal classification with 20,111 images postdata augmentation,and reducing the number of trainable models.The model is trained on ocular disorder retinal fundus image datasets according to the severity of six age-related macular degeneration(AMD),one of the most common eye illnesses,Cataract,Diabetes,Glaucoma,Hypertension,andMyopia with one class Normal.From the experiment outcomes,it is observed that the suggested MobileNetV2-SVM model size is compressed.The testing accuracy for MobileNetV2-SVM,InceptionV3,and MobileNetV2 is 90.11%,86.88%,and 89.76%respectively while MobileNetV2-SVM,InceptionV3,and MobileNetV2 accuracy are observed to be 92.59%,83.38%,and 90.16%,respectively.The proposed novel technique can be used to classify all biometric medical image datasets on mobile devices.

Plantain-based diet modulates atrazine-induced testicular toxicities in rats

Objective:To assess the potential of plantain-based diet in modulating testicular toxicities in rats exposed to atrazine.Methods:The plantain-based diet at 50%,25% and 12.5% were prepared from the basal diet by substituting the corn starch with plantain fruit pulp flour at different percentages.Wistar rats were fed plantain-based diet in varying concentrations ranging from 12.5% to 50% of the basal diet for 21 days before or after atrazine treatment in a two-phase experiment:preventive and therapeutic phases.The therapeutic model(n=35)had seven groups with 5 rats each,including the control,atrazine,atrazine recovery,atrazine plus plantain-based diet 50%,25%,12.5%,and atrazine plus quercetin groups.The preventive model(n=30)had six groups of 5 rats,consisting of the control,atrazine,50%,25%,12.5% plantain-based diet plus atrazine,and quercetin plus atrazine groups.Gonadal hormones(testosterone,luteinizing hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone),sperm parameters(sperm motility,viability,morphology and concentration),and testicular function indices(protein,cholesterol,glycogen,acid phosphatase,alkaline phosphatase and lactate dehydrogenase)were measured.Results:The gonadal hormones,sperm characteristics,and testicular function indices of the rat testis decreased significantly in the atrazine group alongside degeneration of the histoarchitecture.However,plantain-based diet restored the gonadal hormone concentrations,semen parameters,and testicular function indices in both the preventive and therapeutic models.Conclusions:Treatment with plantain-based diet protects against rat testicular toxicity caused by atrazine via the modulation of gonadal hormones,sperm quality,testicular function index as well as histoarchitecture of rat testes.

Nigerian Biomass for Bioenergy Applications:A Review on the Potential and Challenges

Nigeria,often referred to as“the giant of Africa,”boasts a sizable population,a thriving economy,and abundant energy resources.Nevertheless,Nigeria has yet to fully harness its renewable energy potential,despite its enormous capacity in this field.The goal of this review paper is to thoroughly examine the difficulties and untapped opportunities in utilizing biomass for bioenergy production in Nigeria.Notably,Nigeria generates substantial volumes of biomass annually,primarily in the form of agricultural waste,which is often either discarded or burned inefficiently,resulting in significant ecological and environmental damage.Therefore,an efficient approach to reducing pollution and transforming waste into wealth involves converting these biomass resources into energy.This work critically examines the status of biomass utilization for energy applications in Nigeria and highlights the bottlenecks that impede its widespread adoption.The review emphasizes the economic and ecological advantages of biomass utilization over traditional waste treatment methods.Additionally,it underscores the appeal of biomass as an industrial fuel source,particularly considering the current high cost of fossil fuels in contemporary Nigeria.Relevant literature on biomass,energy,agricultural waste,fossil fuel,and calorific value in the context of Nigeria was reviewed by utilizing a thorough search technique in key scientific databases.The analysis did not include any non-English publications.The findings of this research provide valuable insights into the challenges faced in maximizing Nigeria’s biomass potential and offer strategic recommendations to promote the use of biomass for bioenergy development.This review paper will assist a wide range of local and international readers,as well as industries interested in green and bioenergy,in making informed decisions regarding the most suitable types of biomass for biofuel production.

Cement-lime stabilization of crude oil contaminated kaolin clay

The present study examines the effect of stabilization on the geo-environmental properties of crude oil contaminated kaolin clay.Lime and cement were mixed in a ratio of 1:2 and added to the simulated crude oil contaminated kaolin clay at different percentages(5%,10%,15%,and 20%)as a stabilizing binder.Parameters investigated include consistency limits,unconfined compressive strength(UCS),and direct shear,and compressibility and leaching characteristics of the untreated and stabilized soils.The experimental testing reveals a decrease in the consistency limits with addition of the stabilizing binder.Maximum UCS values occurred for 15%cement-lime stabilized kaolin clay at different curing periods(i.e.0 d,7 d,14 d,and 28 d).By increasing the cement-lime content from 5%to 15%,the UCS values of the stabilized clay increase from 185 kPa to 350 kPa and from 785 kPa to 1160 kPa for uncured and 28 dcured samples,respectively.Both the compression and recompression indices of the contaminated kaolin clay from the consolidation test decrease by 40%and 50%,respectively,with 20%stabilizing binder addition.The leachability of the contaminated clay also reduces with incorporation of cement and lime.According to the scanning electron microscope(SEM)test,addition of stabilizing binder transforms the dispersed structure of contaminated kaolin clay into a knitted flocculated structure.The study shows the effectiveness of cement-lime mix in stabilizing the contaminated kaolin clay and the possible use of stabilized contaminated kaolin clay as an alternative construction material.

Evaluation of metal nanoparticles for drug delivery systems

Diminazene aceturate is a trypanocide with unwanted toxicity and limited efficacy.It was reasoned that conjugating diminazene aceturate to functionalized nanoparticle would lower untoward toxicity while improving selectivity and therapeutic efficacy.Silver and gold nanoparticles were evaluated for their capacities to serve as carriers for diminazene aceturate.The silver and gold nanoparticles were synthesized,functionalized and coupled to diminazene aceturate following established protocols.The nanoparticle conjugates were characterized.The free diminazene aceturate and drug conjugated nanoparticles were subsequently evaluated for cytotoxicity in vitro.The characterizations by transmission electron microscopy or UV/Vis spectroscopy revealed that conjugation of diminazene aceturate to silver or gold nanoparticles was successful.Evaluation for cytotoxic actions in vitro demonstrated no significance difference between free diminazene aceturate and the conjugates.Our data suggest that surface modified metal nanoparticles could be optimized for drug delivery systems.

Characterization of cobalt ferrite-supported activated carbon for removal of chromium and lead ions from tannery wastewater via adsorption equilibrium

In this experiment,cobalt ferrite-supported activated carbon(CF-AC)was developed and characterized via the wet impregnation method for the removal of Cr and Pb(II)ions from tannery wastewater.Batch adsorption was carried out to evaluate the effect of experimental operating conditions(pH of solution,contact time,adsorbent dose,and temperature),and the removal efficiencies of Cr and Pb(II)ions by the developed adsorbents were calculated and recorded for all experimental conditions.These variables were estimated and reported as removal efficiencies of 98.2%for Cr and 96.4%for Pb(II)ions at the optimal conditions of 5,0.8 g,80 min,and 333 K for pH,adsorbent dose,contact time,and temperature,respectively.The equilibrium for the sorption of Cr and Pb(II)ions was studied using four widely used isotherm models(the Langmuir,Freundlich,Dubinin-Radushkevich,and Temkin isotherm models).It was found that the Freundlich isotherm model fit better with the coefficient of determination(R2)of 0.9484 and a small sum of square error of 0.0006.The maximum adsorption capacities(Qm)of Pb(II)and Cr adsorbed onto CF-AC were determined to be 6.27 and 23.6 mg/g,respectively.The adsorption process conformed well to pseudo-second order kinetics as revealed by the high R2 values obtained for both metals.The thermodynamic parameters showed that adsorption of Cr and Pb(II)ions onto CF-AC was spontaneous,feasible,and endothermic under the studied conditions.The mean adsorption energy(E)values revealed that the adsorption mechanism of Cr and Pb(II)by CF-AC is physical in nature.The results of the study showed that adsorbent developed from CF-AC can be efficiently used as an environmentally friendly alternative adsorbent,for removal of Cr and Pb(II)ions in tannery wastewater.

Thermal explosion and irreversibility of hydromagnetic reactive couple stress fluid with viscous dissipation and Navier slips

The study examines the thermal explosion branched-chain and entropy generation as a result of irreversibility of hydromagnetic reactive couple stress liquid with viscous heating and Navier slips.The reactive fluid flow is enhanced by heat dependent pre-exponential factor and axial pressure gradient in a porous wall.The flow equations for the non-Newtonian couple stress fluid model and heat transfer are solved by employing a semi-analytical collocation weighted residual method(CWRM).The efficiency and validity of the obtained results was verified with the existing results.The results reveal that at low hysteresis magnetic and viscous dissipation the irreversibility process is minimized and thermodynamic equilibrium is improved.The results from this study can assist in understanding the relationship between thermal and thermal explosions branched-chain.

Review: Silica Aerogel as a Viable Absorbent for Oil Spill Remediation

The review article reflects on the potential of silica aerogel as viable absorbents for spilled crude oil. Reported oil absorption capacity of silica aerogel shows it has a future in polluted site clean-up. The review presents the various dynamics of oil spill, conventional clean-up technologies and silica aerogel synthesis techniques. It also highlights some investigations of oil spill sorption using aerogels. The future prospect of rice husk as a cheaper source silica aerogel is also considered.

Physical and mechanical characteristics of composite briquette from coal and pretreated wood fines

Melina wood torrefied at 260℃ for 60 min was agglomerated with lean grade coal fines into composite briquettes using pitch as binder.Torrefied biomass(3%-20%)and coal fines(80%-97%)were blended together to produce the composite briquettes under a hydraulic press(28 MPa).The briquettes were cured at 300℃.Density,water resistance,drop to fracture,impact resistance,and cold crushing strength were evaluated for the composite briquettes.The proximate,ultimate,and calorific value analyses were carried out according to different ASTM standards.Microstructural studies were carried out using scanning electron microscope and electron probe microanalyzer equipped with energy dispersive x-ray.Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrophotometer(FTIR)was used to obtain the functional groups in the raw materials and briquettes.The density of the composite briquettes ranged from 0.92 to 1.31 g/cm^(3) after curing.Briquettes with<10%torrefied biomass has good water resistance index(>95%).The highest cold crushing strength of 4 MPa was obtained for briquettes produced from 97%coal fines and 3%torrefied biomass.The highest drop to fracture(54 times/2 m)and impact resistance index(1350)were obtained for the sample produced from 97%coal and 3%torrefied biomass.The fixed and elemental carbons of the briquettes showed a mild improvement compared to the raw coal.The peaks from FTIR spectra for the briquettes shows the presence of aromatic C=C bonds and phenolic OH group.The composite briquettes with up to 20%torrefied biomass can all be useful as fuel for various applications.

New Improved Variational Homotopy Perturbation Method for Bratu-Type Problems

This research paper deals with the boundary and initial value problems for the Bratu-type model by using the New Improved Variational Homotopy Perturbation Method. The New Method does not require discritization, linearization or any restrictive assumption of any form in providing analytical or approximate solutions to linear and nonlinear equation without the integral related with nonlinear term. Theses virtues make it to be reliable and its efficiency is demonstrated with numerical examples.

Stability Analysis of SIQS Epidemic Model with Saturated Incidence Rate

A SIQS epidemic model with saturated incidence rate is studied. Two equilibrium points exist for the system, disease-free and endemic equilibrium. The stability of the disease-free equilibrium and endemic equilibrium exists when the basic reproduction number R0, is less or greater than unity respectively. The global stability of the disease-free and endemic equilibrium is proved using Lyapunov functions and Poincare-Bendixson theorem plus Dulac’s criterion respectively.

Isolation and molecular characterization of entomopathogenic nematode,Heterorhabditis sp.from an arable land in Nigeria

The occurrence of entomopathogenic nematodes(EPNs)in arable soil samples from Nigeria was investigated using Baermann extraction tray and insect-bait(White’s trap)techniques.Isolates were tested for infectivity using the larvae of Galleria mellonella(greater moth)and Tenebrio molitor(mealworm).The study revealed a new species of Heterorhabditis(MT371593)in soil samples that were randomly collected from an arable farmland cultivated with cassava TMS-30572 at the Teaching and Research Farm of Landmark University,Nigeria.Amplification of the internal transcribed spacer region(ITS)of the ribosomal DNA produced a nucleotide sequence of 933 base pairs(bp).A BLASTN search of GenBank showed that the sequence of the Nigerian isolate is identical at 99%similarity to that of Heterorhabditis sp.from Thailand.Infectivity test of the isolate showed 100%mortality against T.molitor larvae within 48 h of exposure while only 80%mortality was recorded for G.mellonella after 1 week of exposure.This is the first account of Heterorhabditis sp.in Nigeria.The varying degrees of infectivity against mealworm and greater moth observed in this study proved that the Nigerian isolate of Heterorhabditis sp.could potentially be an attractive option in the management of insect pests of cash crops.

Phenotypic Characterization and Strategies for Genetic Improvement of WAD Goats under Backyard Systems

West African Dwarf (WAD) goats represent one of the predominant small ruminant breeds raised by resource-limited households in southern Nigeria as well as in the humid west and central Africa. This breed of goats is renowned for its adaptation to hot and humid environments, high fertility and prolificacy under backyard systems where they are raised almost with zero investment. On account of its contributions to household income and food security in southern Nigeria, there is the need for a detailed phenotypic and genetic characterization as well as the design of breeding strategies for its conservation through sustainable utilization. A critical challenge, however, is that there are no national breeding policies in most of the countries where WAD goats are raised. The objectives of this paper are: to review literature reports on trait-level information and estimates of genetic parameters for some economic characters of WAD goats;and to discuss a communal breeding scheme for its conservation through sustainable utilization. The presentation shows that WAD goats represent a highly diverse population, with particular reference to qualitative and performance-related traits, reflecting the role of traditional institutions in the maintenance of animal diversity in local populations. A genetic improvement programme involving dispersed open nucleus breeding scheme was discussed. The scheme involves backyard WAD goat units in villages as base population and dispersed communally managed schemes that maintain a population of bucks only, as nucleus units. Critical issues such as the definition of breeding goals by farmers, as well as communal project ownership, are emphasized. The ultimate goal of the breeding programme is to create opportunities for community-based management of WAD goat genetic resources for the benefit of backyard goat farmers in the region.

Effect of alcohol infusion ofCissus populnea root on testicular function and serum hormone of male Wistar rats

Objective:To examine the effect ofCissus populnea root on testicular function of male Wistar rats.Methods:Twenty albino male Wistar rats [(100.0 ±25.5) g] were selected into four groups randomly. The control group were administered 0.20 mL of distilled water while the other groups received 0.05 mL, 0.10 mL, and 0.20 mL/kg body weight of ethanol infusion. Oral administration was done using oropharyngeal cannula once daily for 14 days. Animals were thereafter sacrificed on day 15. Data obtained from this study were analysed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with multiple comparisons, post-hoc Tukey HSD was subsequently used and values atP<0.05 were considered statistically significant.Results:There were significant increases in serum testosterone, testes-body weight ratio, luteinising hormone and follicle stimulating hormone, respectively, compared with those in control group. Similarly, increase in acid phosphatase, alkaline phosphatase, protein, glycogen and cholesterol levels were more significant compared with those in control group.Conclusions:The findings of this study reveals enhanced secretions of the sex hormones and other indices at 0.05 mL/kg body weight administration ofCissus populnea root ethanol infusion. However, dosages exceeding 0.05 mL/kg body weight gradually depletes the level of reproductive indices assayed for in this current study. Therefore, caution must be taken when consuming ethanol infusion ofCissus populnea root above the dosages used in this current study.

Inhibitory effects of methanolic Olea europaea and acetonic Acacia laeta on growth of Babesia and Theileria

Objective:To evaluate the antipiroplasmic activities of methanolic extract of Olea europaea(MOE)and acetonic extract of Acacia laeta(AAL)against Babesia and Theileria parasites in vitro and evaluate the chemotherapeutic effects of these extracts against Babesia(B.)microti in vivo.Methods:Fluorescence assay using SYBR Green 1 nucleic acid stain was used to detect inhibitory effects of the two extracts as well as the combination effects of the two extracts with diminazene aceturate and atovaquone on four Babesia species and Theileria equi in vitro while for in vivo experiments,8-weekold female BALB/c mice were injected intraperitoneally with 1× 107 B.microti-iRBCs and treated orally at a dose of 150 mg/kg of both extracts.Results:The half maximal inhibitory concentration(IC50)values of AAL against B.bovis,B.bigemina,B.divergens,B.caballi,and Theileria equi were lower than those of MOE extracts.Toxicity assay on Madin-Darby bovine kidney,mouse embryonic fibroblast(NIH/3T3),and human foreskin fibroblast cell lines showed that MOE and AAL affected only the viability of Madin-Darby bovine kidney cell line with half maximal effective concentrations(EC50)of(794.7±41.9)and(873.9±17.5)μg/mL,respectively.The oral treatments of MOE and AAL at 150 mg/kg inhibited the growth of B.microti in mice by 80.4% and 64.4%,respectively.The MOE and diminazene aceturate combination showed a higher chemotherapeutic effect than that of monotherapy.Conclusions:MOE and AAL have the potential to be an alternative remedy for treating piroplasmosis.Furthermore,the combination therapy of MOE + DA was more potent against B.microti infection in mice than their monotherapies.

Performance of Tannin/Glycerol-Chromate Hybrid Conversion Coating on Aluminium

A smart hybrid conversion coating has been developed. Modifications of coating solutions with poly-hydroxyl organic materials to reduce the usual mud cracking pattern characteristics of chromate conversion coatings (CCCs) and improve its ability to release inhibitors to corroding sites have been achieved. The smart functionalised chromate conversion coating (SFCCC), developed on aluminium substrate has undergone laboratory checks and commercial runs under factory conditions confirmed its potency in improving corrosion resistance and paint adhesion to metal surfaces. In-service performance of the coating in the past three years is excellent.

Nutritional Quality and Acceptability Evaluation of Ogi Flour Biofortified with Garlic and Ginger

Ogi an affordable complementary food is of paramount importance due to its popularity as diets of many native African populations.The study explored effects of biofortification with garlic and ginger on acceptability and nutritional quality of ogi flour prepared from sorghum and quality protein maize by natural fermentation technique.Pasting properties,bulk density,water absorption capacity,total reducing sugar and sensory characteristics were evaluated.Biofortified samples showed stable total reducing sugar content,increase in bulk density,decrease in water absorption capacity and peak time during storage.The pasting temperatures of biofortified ogi flour were below boiling temperature thus formed paste in hot water below the boiling point.Ogi(maize)with 2%garlic-2%ginger and ogi(sorghum)with 4%garlic-2%ginger were the most preferred with no significant difference(p<0.05).Biofortification with garlic and ginger at 2 and 4%improved the quality attributes and acceptability of ogi flour.The study on biofortification of ogi with garlic and ginger is germane in formulation of nourishing weaning food that is light,less bulky for babies,nursing mothers and malnourished populations.

Analysis of the Effects of Climate Change on Crop Output in Nigeria

This study investigates the effects of climate change factors and non-climate change factors on crop output in Nigeria. Empirical research approach was adopted with the use of secondary sources of time series annual data obtained from reputable sources for the period 1980-2013. Error Correction Mechanism was used for the analysis. It was found that in the short run, only rainfall tested significantly positive to crop output among the climate change factors but there is evidence of significant effects of all climate change factors on crop output in the long-run. For example, temperature, carbon dioxide emission, carbon emission and rainfall were tested significantly to crop output. Furthermore, non-climate change factors like economically active population, gross capital formation, and land area equipped for irrigation were significantly positive to crop output. To forestall the effects of climate change on crop output, the study recommends that policy makers should formulate policies that will aid farmers towards adaptation practices in farming that can mitigate the effects of climate change. Furthermore, governments and other relevant agencies should also design programmes that can motivate the masses to increase their involvement in crop production.