The Nigerian Journal of Sociology and Anthropology, 2021
This paper took its departure from a research project on a new programme to address gully erosion... more This paper took its departure from a research project on a new programme to address gully erosion and its effects in Auchi and Benin City, Edo State, southern Nigeria. No public policy or strategy to address gully erosion exists and previous government amelioration has been inconclusive. We gathered sociodemographic and other data on 1900 respondents with a questionnaire, interview and direct nonparticipant observation. Among others, we found that gully erosion affected mainly the poor and powerless segment of society; material poverty is underscored by ecological poverty and there is poverty of interventions to check the disaster. Several extant practices aggravate the disaster and there is no communal ameliorative response. We conclude that affected persons are alienated from governments and their environment. Dysfunctional behaviour, nonchalance in the face of disaster point to fatalism and anomie. New policy should address poverty, community education and planning to stem overur...
Annals of the Social Science Academy of Nigeria, 2018
Intersectionality is discussed as a harvest of multiple disadvantages and deprivations by majorit... more Intersectionality is discussed as a harvest of multiple disadvantages and deprivations by majority of urbanites. Parameters of disadvantage include cash poverty, poor health, lack of electricity, water and sanitation, proneness to crime and illiteracy, unemployment and underemployment. The study adopted a mixed method model and proceeded with a structured questionnaire administered to a sample of 1022 respondents in Upper Saponba area, the largest slum district in Benin City, southern Nigeria. Supplementary data were collected through in-depth interview with a purposive sample of 10 community members. Results seem to negate the culture of poverty hypothesis even as many poor residents express despair on the prospects of a good life in the city. This desolation coincides with new public policy by which governments withdraw from public space in the face of increasing poverty. We conclude that social intersectionality in urban Africa is a simultaneity of poverty and deprivations exacer...
Introduction: Cervical cancer is one of the leading female cancers with slow progression but stil... more Introduction: Cervical cancer is one of the leading female cancers with slow progression but still remains a major public health problem in developing countries. Each year about 528, 000 new cases of cervical cancer are diagnosed worldwide, with a mortality of about 266 000 and 85% of these deaths occur in developing countries. The aim of the study was to evaluate the successes and challenges of establishing a cervical screening and treatment programme using visual inspection with acetic-acid and cryotherapy in The Gambia. Material and Methods: A qualitative (phenomenological) study designs was used and a total of 6 midwives conducting cervical cancer screening were purposively selected and interviewed on the successes and challenges of establishing cervical cancer screening services in The Gambia. A key informant interview was conducted with the use of an interview guide. The interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. The data was analyzed using thematic analysis. This stud...
Annals of the Social Science Academy of Nigeria, 2019
Intersectionality is discussed as a harvest of multiple disadvantages and deprivations by majorit... more Intersectionality is discussed as a harvest of multiple disadvantages and deprivations by majority of urbanites. Parameters of disadvantage include cash poverty, poor health, lack of electricity, water and sanitation, proneness to crime and illiteracy, unemployment and underemployment. The study adopted a mixed method model and proceeded with a structured questionnaire administered to a sample of 1022 respondents in Upper Saponba area, the largest slum district in Benin City, southern Nigeria. Supplementary data were collected through in-depth interview with a purposive sample of 10 community members. Results seem to negate the culture of poverty hypothesis even as many poor residents express despair on the prospects of a good life in the city. This desolation coincides with new public policy by which governments withdraw from public space in the face of increasing poverty. We conclude that social intersectionality in urban Africa is a simultaneity of poverty and deprivations exacer...
This study is based on the author’s practical experience as the head of a Task Force appointed by... more This study is based on the author’s practical experience as the head of a Task Force appointed by government for the beautification and environmental sanitation of a principal city in southern Nigeria. The terms of reference of the Task Force are presented as a rational framework for the achievement of the desired objectives of a clean and beautiful city. A work plan and specific interventions for achieving stated objectives are discussed. But there are several structural (socio-cultural) constraints directly antithetical to the stated objectives of the Task Force. The paper is concluded with a discussion of the theoretical dilemmas in African underdevelopment. For example, are the observed constraints a function of the proverbial polarity between traditional society and modern urbanism in Africa? Is urban syncretism possible in Africa?
The Nigerian Journal of Sociology and Anthropology, 2021
This paper took its departure from a research project on a new programme to address gully erosion... more This paper took its departure from a research project on a new programme to address gully erosion and its effects in Auchi and Benin City, Edo State, southern Nigeria. No public policy or strategy to address gully erosion exists and previous government amelioration has been inconclusive. We gathered sociodemographic and other data on 1900 respondents with a questionnaire, interview and direct nonparticipant observation. Among others, we found that gully erosion affected mainly the poor and powerless segment of society; material poverty is underscored by ecological poverty and there is poverty of interventions to check the disaster. Several extant practices aggravate the disaster and there is no communal ameliorative response. We conclude that affected persons are alienated from governments and their environment. Dysfunctional behaviour, nonchalance in the face of disaster point to fatalism and anomie. New policy should address poverty, community education and planning to stem overur...
Annals of the Social Science Academy of Nigeria, 2018
Intersectionality is discussed as a harvest of multiple disadvantages and deprivations by majorit... more Intersectionality is discussed as a harvest of multiple disadvantages and deprivations by majority of urbanites. Parameters of disadvantage include cash poverty, poor health, lack of electricity, water and sanitation, proneness to crime and illiteracy, unemployment and underemployment. The study adopted a mixed method model and proceeded with a structured questionnaire administered to a sample of 1022 respondents in Upper Saponba area, the largest slum district in Benin City, southern Nigeria. Supplementary data were collected through in-depth interview with a purposive sample of 10 community members. Results seem to negate the culture of poverty hypothesis even as many poor residents express despair on the prospects of a good life in the city. This desolation coincides with new public policy by which governments withdraw from public space in the face of increasing poverty. We conclude that social intersectionality in urban Africa is a simultaneity of poverty and deprivations exacer...
Introduction: Cervical cancer is one of the leading female cancers with slow progression but stil... more Introduction: Cervical cancer is one of the leading female cancers with slow progression but still remains a major public health problem in developing countries. Each year about 528, 000 new cases of cervical cancer are diagnosed worldwide, with a mortality of about 266 000 and 85% of these deaths occur in developing countries. The aim of the study was to evaluate the successes and challenges of establishing a cervical screening and treatment programme using visual inspection with acetic-acid and cryotherapy in The Gambia. Material and Methods: A qualitative (phenomenological) study designs was used and a total of 6 midwives conducting cervical cancer screening were purposively selected and interviewed on the successes and challenges of establishing cervical cancer screening services in The Gambia. A key informant interview was conducted with the use of an interview guide. The interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. The data was analyzed using thematic analysis. This stud...
Annals of the Social Science Academy of Nigeria, 2019
Intersectionality is discussed as a harvest of multiple disadvantages and deprivations by majorit... more Intersectionality is discussed as a harvest of multiple disadvantages and deprivations by majority of urbanites. Parameters of disadvantage include cash poverty, poor health, lack of electricity, water and sanitation, proneness to crime and illiteracy, unemployment and underemployment. The study adopted a mixed method model and proceeded with a structured questionnaire administered to a sample of 1022 respondents in Upper Saponba area, the largest slum district in Benin City, southern Nigeria. Supplementary data were collected through in-depth interview with a purposive sample of 10 community members. Results seem to negate the culture of poverty hypothesis even as many poor residents express despair on the prospects of a good life in the city. This desolation coincides with new public policy by which governments withdraw from public space in the face of increasing poverty. We conclude that social intersectionality in urban Africa is a simultaneity of poverty and deprivations exacer...
This study is based on the author’s practical experience as the head of a Task Force appointed by... more This study is based on the author’s practical experience as the head of a Task Force appointed by government for the beautification and environmental sanitation of a principal city in southern Nigeria. The terms of reference of the Task Force are presented as a rational framework for the achievement of the desired objectives of a clean and beautiful city. A work plan and specific interventions for achieving stated objectives are discussed. But there are several structural (socio-cultural) constraints directly antithetical to the stated objectives of the Task Force. The paper is concluded with a discussion of the theoretical dilemmas in African underdevelopment. For example, are the observed constraints a function of the proverbial polarity between traditional society and modern urbanism in Africa? Is urban syncretism possible in Africa?
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Papers by Chike Okolocha