ACCESS TO INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES AMONG RURAL WOMEN AND YOUTHS IN AGRICULTURE

Thousands of Pseudotolithus elongatus died suddenly in the first quarter of 2020, indicating a high level of wastewater contamination. The goal of the study was to determine the risk of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH) exposure to humans from P. elongatus exposed to pollutants in Bonny River. In two seasons (Wet season and Dry season), 36 P. elongatus and eighteen controls were collected from the Bonny River and examined for PAHs using Gas Chromatography - Flame Ionization Detector (GC-FID). The Dietary Daily Intake (DDI), carcinogenic potencies (B(A)Pteq), PAH4 index, Carcinogenic toxic equivalents (TEQ), and Excess Cancer Risk Index (ECR) were all used to estimate the risk of PAHs. In the rainy season, the DDI of PAHs is 1.4E-03 in Chrysene and Indeno (1,2,3) pyrene, and 1.1E-03 in the dry season. PAH4 levels were found to be 0.065 mg/kg in the rainy season and 0.23 mg/kg in the dry season, both of which are significantly higher than the EU standard of 0.03 mg/kg. Dibenzo (a,h)anthracene B(A)Pteq (6.2E-02 and 0.22) were similarly greater than the EU norm. TEQs were 0.23 mg/kg, and 6.5E-02 was higher than the SV of 5.55E-03 mg/kg, indicating possible toxicity. According to the findings of the current research, consuming Bobo Croaker (Pseudotolithus elongatus) from Bonny River poses a high risk of PAH exposure to humans.

The study looked into how rural women and youths in agriculture used information and communication technology (ICTs). The study's sample size was comprised of 120 respondents from Abia State, Nigeria, who were purposefully selected. The researcher and other research assistants gathered data using standardised questionnaires and an interview schedule. For data analysis and result reporting, simple descriptive statistics such as percentage, standard deviation, and mean scores were used. According to the study's findings, the majority of respondents had access to radio (91.7 percent women and 96.7 percent adolescents), television (91.7 percent women and 93.3 percent juveniles), and GSM (91.7 percent women and 93.3 percent youths) (80.0 percent women, 85.0 percent youths). Radio was selected by respondents as the most accessible ICT for acquiring agricultural information in the area. The study concluded that policies affecting ICT infrastructure development in rural areas should be addressed, as well as the development of appropriate ICTs that work within the farmers' local environment to increase rural women and youths' access to modern ICTs for communicating agricultural information among stakeholders.

Please see the link :- https://www.ikprress.org/index.php/JOGAE/article/view/7580