http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/130 Mon, 20 Apr 2026 06:10:07 GMT 2026-04-20T06:10:07Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2216 KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND PRACTICE OF RETIREMENT PLANNING AMONG CIVIL SERVANTS IN THE KADUNA METROPOLIS, NIGERIA ZOM, Hannatu Ibrahim Retirement Planning (RP) mitigates hardship and frustration faced by would-be retirees. Ineffective RP among Nigerian civil servants is one of the leading causes of severe hardship, frustration, and even pre-mature death after retirement. Previous studies on pension issues have not paid adequate attention to RP. There is a dearth of literature on the extent of knowledge of retirement planning and preparedness of civil servants for post-work life among potential retirees in the civil service. This study was, therefore, designed to investigate knowledge, attitude and practice associated with RP among civil servants in the Kaduna Metropolis, Nigeria. The Voluntary Social Action theory of Talcott Parsons and Exchange theory of George Homans provided the theoretical framework, while the cross-sectional survey design was adopted. Data were generated using both quantitative and qualitative methods. The Kaduna Metropolis was purposively selected due to high population density of civil servants in the state. Civil servants were clustered into 14 ministries. A total sample of 321 civil servants was drawn using Yamane’s (1967) sample size determination formula. Simple random sampling was used to administer copies of a structured questionnaire to civil servants with less than 10 years to retirement. In-depth interviews were conducted with five executives of the Civil Service Union, civil servants from the State Pension Board and directors of Ministries. The quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and Chi Square at p≤0.05, while the qualitative data were content-analysed. The respondents’ age was 48.57±2.34 years; 57.0% were male, with 62.9% married. The Knowledge of RP (38%) was low. The knowledge of Retirement Planning was significantly associated with ministries (χ2=284.83), age (χ2=192.87), education (χ2=273.72) and grade level (χ2=215.40). Only 22.7% of respondents had positive attitude towards RP and this was also significantly related to ministries (χ2=320.25), age (χ2=294.90), education (χ2=303.48) and grade level (χ2=322.79). Less than 31.2% had started RP practice and this was significantly related to ministries (χ2=215.17), education (χ2=210.97), income level (χ2=23.94) and years of service before retirement (χ2=18.83). Perceived mismanagement of pension funds 57.9% and poor income 50.5% adversely affected RP practices. The absence of timely retirement counseling and low financial literacy were challenges of Retirement Planning. Poor salary, lack of entrepreneurial skills, motivation, and saving culture affected Retirement Planning. Furthermore, huge social burden such as family responsibilities and the lack of trust in government negatively also affected their RP. Inadequate knowledge, attitude and practice of retirement planning among civil servants in the Kaduna Metropolis affected their retirement preparations, thereby making them potentially vulnerable to post-retirement stress. State Governments, pension unions, trade unions and other pension authorities should educate civil servants early enough about the importance of Retirement Planning through seminars, counseling and workshops. Tue, 01 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2216 2023-08-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2214 KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDES AND PREDICTORS OF CERVICAL CANCER SCREENING UPTAKE AMONG WOMEN IN OYO STATE, NIGERIA OWOLABI, Gbonjubola Oludayo Cervical Cancer (CC), a preventable malignant tumour in women’s cervixes, is one of the most common causes of maternal deaths in developing countries. Despite its preventability through regular Cervical Cancer Screening (CCS), it is the second most common cancer responsible for gynaecological morbidity and mortality in Nigeria. Studies on CC have largely focused on its biomedical contexts, with little attention paid to the social contexts affecting the knowledge and attitudes towards the uptake of Cervical Cancer Screening (CCS). This study, therefore, investigated the awareness, knowledge, attitudes, perceptions of risks, and the socio-cultural factors influencing the uptake of CCS among women in Oyo State, Nigeria. The Health Belief Model was adopted, while the mixed methods, comprising a crosssectional survey design, was utilised. Oyo State was purposively selected based on the availability of a functional cancer registry. Two Local Government Areas (LGAs) were randomly selected from each of the three senatorial districts. Using Leslie Kish’s (1965) formula, a sample of 960 respondents was determined based on the projected 2019 population of these LGAs. A questionnaire on the socio-economic, attitude, knowledge, perception of the risk factors, and accessibility to screening centres and health workers was systematically administered to women (aged 20-60 years) in the selected LGAs - Oluyole (189), Oyo West (126), Irepo (109), Ogbomosho North (178), Ibarapa-North (91) and Ibadan South-West (267) LGAs. Questionnaire was proportionally administered based on the LGAs’ population. In-depth interviews were conducted with six community leaders, six women and eight religious leaders. Key informant interviews were conducted with four physicians and 12 nurses\midwives. Three focus group discussions were held with married men. The quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistics, Chi square and multiple regression at p≤0.05, while the qualitative data were content-analysed. The respondents’ age was 34.67±11.91 years, 86.0% earned below ₦45,000 monthly, and 65.3% were married. Awareness of CC was low (38.0%) based on the misconception of its causes, and it varied by income (χ2=14.92), education (χ2=36.77) and employment (χ2=54.87) status. Knowledge about the causes of CC was poor, as 49.3% had knowledge about its symptoms. Socio-cultural factors jointly predicted uptake of CCS (R=0.21, R2 =0.05, Adjusted R2=0.04, (F (4,929) =10.90). Knowledge of CC insignificantly contributed to CCS uptake (β=0.02). Perceived benefit (β=0.54), perceived severity (β=-0.02) and cervical cancer risk perception (β=0.21), independently contributed to the uptake of CCS. More than half (60.0%) had negative attitude towards CCS uptake. Womanhood (62.6%), promiscuity (56.3%), smoking habit (53.7%), and family history (47.0%) were the reported risk factors for CC. A majority of the male discussants associated jejere enu ileomo with prostitution. The use of herbs, role of diviners, spousal support, and religious beliefs influenced uptake of CCS. The cost of CCS, location of CCS centres, fear of stigmatisation, and perceived pains limited CCS uptake. Poor knowledge and awareness of cervical cancer negatively influenced attitudes towards cervical cancer screening among women in Oyo State, Nigeria. A multi-stakeholder holistic framework to motivate positive awareness and uptake of cervical cancer screening is recommended. Thu, 01 Jun 2023 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2214 2023-06-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2212 SAND MINING, LAND DEGRADATION AND CONFLICT MANAGEMENT IN EVBUOBANOSA, EDO STATE, NIGERIA NWALI, Ewere Okwudei Sand Mining (SM) is the extraction of sand aggregate from land surface and water bodies. Globally, sand is a critical resource for construction purposes. In Nigeria, SM is a process that degenerates into land degradation and conflict involving a network of people and structures. Extant studies have focused more on sand extraction and environmental degradation than its associated structures and conflicts. This study, therefore, examined land degradation and conflict management due to SM, with a view to determining the extent of SM, the structural organisations involved, livelihood implications of resultant land degradation, the networks of associated conflict and the conflict management mechanisms in Evbuobanosa Dukedom, Edo State, Nigeria. Theory of Ecological Marxism guided the study, while the exploratory design was adopted. Qualitative data were purposively collected from Abudu, Evbuobanosa and Iru communities. Secondary data were sourced from the records of Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel, Benin-city office. Key Informant Interviews were conducted with 10 community leaders, six youth leaders, four pit owners and four environmental management experts. In-depth interviews were conducted with 40 sand miners, four SM association leaders, six tipper drivers, 18 farmers and eight fishermen. Eighteen Focus Group Discussion sessions were held with sand miners (9), farmers (4) and community members (5). Two case studies were also conducted with sand miners. Data were content-analysed. Sand was mined extensively, legally and illegally. Most mining sites (81.4%) were illegal with depth of 1-3 meters, each covering about 1011m2 and mined until stopped by regulators. Illegal miners thereafter, moved elsewhere to continue mining. Legal mines had depths ranging from 25-34 meters covering between 1011m2-32,374m2 and could reach down to the water table. The structural organisation of SM included the positional elites: community elders and legal miners, and artisanal working-class, illegal miners, mine workers, tipper loaders and drivers. Legal miners had renewable five-year mining permits. Site operations were largely mechanised and performed by three principal workers: manager, cashier and machine operators under close monitoring of legal miners to forestall fraud. Illegal mining was executed manually, on land and in water with slightly differing structures. On land, sand scouts/encroachers, loaders and drivers were involved, while diver-excavator, jerker (sand shoveler from canoe to beach), tipper drivers and loaders were involved in water excavation. Sand mining exacerbated flooding and induced landslides with devastating impact on the farmers. The SM drove aquatic lives out of the reach of fishermen. Legal and illegal miners clashed over sites and with indigenes. The conflict networks included guilds, kins, and fraternities: Asigidi, Osokpikan, Ogboni, Vikings, Black Axe, and Eiye among other fraternities. Conflict management mechanisms included negotiation and appeasement between parties. Unresolved cases were referred to the elders’ council, Ogwedion, where defaulting parties were sanctioned with traditional fines: Odegbeˋn’ekpetin. Sand mining in Evbuobanosa, Edo State is structured on positional elite-artisanal working class relationalplatform, accommodated by traditional arrangements and legal-rational permits. Its conflict management mechanisms were based on traditional institutions. Government needs to implement sustainable mining regulations to minimise land degradation. Thu, 01 Jun 2023 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2212 2023-06-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2210 ADOPTION OF HEALTH INSURANCE SCHEME AND HEALTHSEEKING BEHAVIOUR AMONG EMPLOYEES OF PRIVATE ORGANISATIONS IN ENUGU STATE, NIGERIA STARRIS-ONYEMA, Promise Nkwachi The Health Insurance Scheme (HIS), a means of financing medical care among employees globally, is designed to subsidise medical costs. In Nigeria, HIS is inadequately implemented and this affects access to healthcare among employees, particularly in the private sector. Existing studies have mainly focused on biomedical aspects of HIS in the public sector with scant attention given to the social factors associated with its utilisation among employees of private organisations, including Enugu State, where the scheme has officially been adopted by private sector organisations. This study, therefore, examined the extent to which HIS is utilised; influence of its adoption on health-seeking behaviour; treatment pathways of enrollees; gender differentials in its utilisation; and the challenges reported by private sector employers that have enlisted in the scheme in Enugu State. The Structural Functionalist Theory and Health Belief Model served as framework, while the cross-sectional survey design was employed. The purposive sampling technique was used to select one organisation from each of the manufacturing and service industries that have adopted HIS. A sample of 457 respondents were drawn using Yamane’s formula. Simple random sampling was used to proportionately administer semi-structured questionnaire to employees in manufacturing (369) and service (88) industries. Twenty-four in-depth interviews were conducted with employees in manufacturing (14) and service (10) industries. Sixteen key informant interviews were conducted with management staff of manufacturing (5) and service (3) industries. Four healthcare providers from National Health Insurance Agency (NHIA) accredited hospitals, two managers of health maintenance organisations, and two NHIA executive officers. The quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Logistic regression and T-test at p≤0.05, while the qualitative data were content-analysed. The respondents’ age was 38±2.4 years; 77.4% had tertiary education and 70.8% were married. Forty-six percent partially utilised and 32.0% adequately utilised HIS. The extent to which HIS was adequately utilised was significantly associated with respondents’ aged ≥50 years (OR=4.87), tertiary education (OR=3.53) and those who were married (OR=2.57). Influence of HIS on health-seeking behaviour was significantly associated with senior staff (OR=1.57) and 100, 000 (OR=4.04) as monthly income. The treatment pathways for employees started with visit to HIS hospitals (61.2%), home therapy (23.2%), visit to hospitals without HIS (12.5%), faith/religious centres (2.9%) and traditional medical centre (0.2%). Some of those who did not visit HIS accredited hospitals at the onset of their ill-health resorted to visiting HIS accredited hospitals when their condition deteriorated. Female employees (52.6%) were more likely to seek healthcare through HIS than their male counterparts (47.4%) after enrolling in HIS plan. Private sector employers’ challenges in the adoption of HIS included payment of premium, abuse of the scheme by some employees, complex bureaucratic structure of the scheme and employees' inability to access certain treatments due to their organisations’ chosen HIS plan. Socio-organisational and individual factors influenced the adoption of health insurance scheme and the health seeking-behaviour of private sector employees in Enugu State, Nigeria. Health maintenance officials, Healthcare providers and other stakeholders should therefore increase awareness about the benefits of utilising health insurance scheme by private sector employees in order to reduce out-of-pocket health expenditure. Tue, 01 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2210 2023-08-01T00:00:00Z