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Background Reaching and vaccinating zero dose and under-immunized children requires effective strategies and quality data. Primary health care unit level interventions like hands-on training, mentoring, participatory planning and review and enhanced headcount of under two-year children were implemented in four primary health care units Afar and Somali regions. The aim of this manuscript is to describe and share the experience on the effectiveness of these interventions in reaching and vaccinating zero-dose and under immunized children through well planned headcount. Method The intended interventions were implemented in four purposely selected woredas from Afar and Somali regions. One primary health care unit was chosen from each woreda based on different criteria. Following the interventions, headcount of under two-year children was conducted in all villages of four primary health care units’ catchment with active engagement of community leaders. Modified periodic enhanced routine immunization template was used to register enumerated children. Identified zero-dose and under immunized children were referred to nearby immunization sites with referral slip for vaccination. Immunization indicators and the reason for missing immunization, descriptive analysis done using Microsoft Excel. Result Improved primary health care linkage coupled with strengthened capacity enabled primary health care units to conduct enhanced head count to identify and vaccinate unreached children. The headcount led to the identification of 390 (24%) never vaccinated and 185 (11%) under-immunized children among 1478 enumerated 6 weeks-11 months children in 21 HPs under four primary health care units. Among 1,619 enumerated 12–23 months children, 332 (21%) were zero-doses and 355 (22%) were under-immunized children. Through referral linkage to immunization service, 92% (357/390) of never vaccinated and 97% (179/185) under-immunized 6 weeks − 11 months children were subsequently vaccinated for vaccines they missed. Likewise, 94% (620/658) above one-year children were vaccinated for the measles vaccine. The reasons for failure to vaccinate for 12–23 months old children were access barriers in 70% followed by lack of knowledge (15%). Conclusion and recommendations Strengthening the primary health care unit linkage and its technical and managerial capacity accompanied by headcount through the involvement of community leaders can benefit the identification and reach of children missing vaccination and other essential health services.

This study examines the issue of food insecurity in Pakistan, a nation whose economy is mostly dependent on agriculture. However, it still badly affects upto 42.54% of households and 45.89% of the population. We have established the extent and severity of food insecurity at the regional levels and analyzed food distribution among individuals. It is based on multiple dimensions which display the origin of food insecurity in Pakistan. We used the data from the Household Integrated Economic Survey 2018-19 (HIES). Food insecurity is quantified using three approaches: gross calories, modifying calories for loss, and removing gifts and assistance. The Foster-Greer-Thorbecke index was used to measure the state and depth of food insecurity. The binary logistic model technique was used to investigate the determinants of food insecurity. The studies revealed that the condition is more prevalent in urban areas. The level of food insecurity is highest in the Sindh region, whereas it is lowest in Punjab. The proportion of food-insecure households is influenced by household size, number of earners, and food deficit. Furthermore, all characteristics such as region, head gender, head education, the proportion of graduates, rooms, house occupancy status, dependence ratio, inequality, and mean calories consumed significantly impacted food insecurity.

Using three quinquennial rounds of consumption expenditure data over two decades (1993–2012), this paper estimates the extent of money metric poverty and inequality in regions of India. Regions are made comparable, and the poverty head count ratio and the poverty gap ratio for 81 regions are derived using the state specific poverty lines as recommended by the Planning Commission of India. The gini index, rich–poor ratio and regression analyses are used to understand the extent of economic inequality in regions of India. Results indicate that though the extent of poverty has declined, economic inequality has increased in regions of India. During 1993–2012, the poverty head count ratio had decreased in 70 regions, increased in seven regions and remained similar in four regions of India. The southern regions of Odisha and southern regions of Chhattisgarh are reeling under high persistent poverty. The spread in poverty head count ratio among regions has increased from 0.38 in 1993–1994 to 0.64 in 2011–2012 confirming divergence in regional poverty in India. The pattern is similar with respect to poverty gap ratio. Regions of Tripura and Sikkim had highest improvements in poverty level. On contrast to poverty estimates, the gini index has decreased in 20 regions and increased in 61 regions. Likewise, 57 regions have recorded increase in rich–poor ratio. The rich–poor ratio was higher in developed regions and lower in less developed regions. Based on these findings, we suggest that regions with persistently high poverty be accorded priority in poverty alleviation program and explore the factors leading to increasing economic inequality.

Determining the population status of the diamondback terrapin (Malaclemys terrapin spp.) is challenging due to their ecology and limitations associated with traditional sampling methods. Visual counting of emergent heads offers a promising, efficient, and non-invasive method for generating abundance estimates of terrapin populations across broader spatial scales than has been achieved using capture–recapture, and can be used to quantify determinants of spatial variation in abundance. We conducted repeated visual head count surveys along the shoreline of Wellfleet Bay in Wellfleet, Massachusetts, and analyzed the count data using a hierarchical modeling framework designed specifically for repeated count data: the N-mixture model. This approach allows for simultaneous modeling of imperfect detection to generate estimates of true terrapin abundance. Detection probability was lowest when temperatures were coldest and when wind speed was highest. Local abundance was on average higher in sheltered sites compared to exposed sites and declined over the course of the sampling season. We demonstrate the utility of pairing visual head counts and N-mixture models as an efficient method for estimating terrapin abundance and show how the approach can be used to identifying environmental factors that influence detectability and distribution.

Pakistan is an underdeveloped state with strong central government. At present there are three levels of government functioning in Pakistan i.e. the federal, provincial and the local. Due to the competence and distributional aspects, the resource allocation method always remained under discussion. Therefore, the present study focused on the role of fiscal autonomy in reducing poverty in Pakistan. Both expenditure and revenue indicators of fiscal policy are considered in this study. For the purpose of analysis, time series annual data from FY1972 to FY2010 is used. Ordinary least square technique is applied to estimate the effect of fiscal autonomy on poverty. The study concludes that the central government should transfer fiscal powers to lower tiers of government in order to reduce poverty in Pakistan.

Conflict and political instability have weakened Guinea-Bissau's productive infrastructure considerably during the past three decades. This situation contributes to an increase in the degree of vulnerability of the population, especially in rural areas where most economic activities continue to take place. As growth has been weak, poverty levels remain high. This book provides a collection of papers on conflict, livelihoods, and poverty in Guinea-Bissau based on both the nationally representative 2002 household survey and a small scale survey with both quantitative and qualitative components implemented in 2004. The chapters deal with growth and poverty, institutions and social networks, the determinants of poverty, the means of livelihoods of the population, and finally cashew production and taxation.

Commonly used aging measures such as the proportion of older people, the proportion of people aged less than 15 years, and the aging index (aged-child ratio) are based on a simple head count ratio (HCR). The HCR is a crude measure as it fails to give any idea about the tail distribution of the population age. Here an attempt has been made to develop new aging indices (age gap, age distribution sensitive and generalized) taking into account both tails of the population age distribution i.e., distribution of the population aged under fifteen and over sixty. These new indices have been applied to the Bangladesh population based on data collected from secondary sources: the international data base, US Census Bureau and Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), for the years 1961, 1981 and 2001 and for some selected Asian countries for 1960, 1980 and 2000 using data from the international UN data base. Conventional aging indices have also been calculated and compared with new ones. Cross-country analysis has also been performed to study the sensitivity of aging indices. Analysis shows an increasing in the speed of aging and new indices indicate the process is faster than conventional ones. For example, relative increases in the speed of aging in 2001 compared to 1981 for conventional and new aging indices (aged-young age gap and aged-young distribution sensitive) are 28.97, 39.19 and 42.04% respectively. The findings also indicate that population aging at the peak is not clear but at the base it is evident. Again the aging process with respect to sex and urban-rural dwelling is also different. From cross-country analysis it is found that the new indices are more sensitive than conventional ones.

Labour force counting relies on general guidelines that are set by the International Labour Office to classify individuals into three labour force states: employment, unemployment and inactivity. However, the resulting statistics are known to be sensitive to slight variations in operational definitions which are prima facie consistent with the general guidelines. We consider two interpretations of the general guidelines, operationalized by the criterion that is currently followed by Eurostat and a criterion that was followed by the Italian Statistical Office up to 1992. After showing that the labour force statistics resulting from the two criteria differ considerably, we compare individuals whose classification depends on the criterion that is adopted with individuals whose classification is common between criteria to study the boundary between unemployment and inactivity. An application of our strategy is presented using data from the Italian Labour Force Survey, painting a picture neatly against the criterion that is currently followed by Eurostat.

This book reviews the experience of the MENA region with poverty and human development since the mid-1980s. It finds that poverty rates did not decline by much during this period while health and education indicators improved substantially. The stagnation of poverty rates is ascribed to the stagnation of the region?s economies during this period while the improvement in human indicators is likely due to several factors including improvement in the delivery of public health and education services.