COVID-19 and Agricultural Entrepreneurship in Zimbabwean Townships: A Systematic Literature Review

Entrepreneurship is crucial in achieving economic prosperity and development in any country. Despite the importance of entrepreneurship in Zimbabwe, the relationship between COVID-19 and agricultural entrepreneurship is still unclear. As a result, the current chapter seeks to answer the following questions: 1. What is the status of literature on the relationship between COVID-19 and agricultural entrepreneurship in Zimbabwean townships? 2. What are the trends and gaps in the studies on the effects of COVID-19 on agricultural entrepreneurship? The chapter answered the questions using bibliometric analysis and a systematic literature review. Two tasks characterised the ‘search': search in Dimension database for bibliometric analysis and search in Google Scholar and ScienceDirect for general systematic review. The dates were limited to between January 2020 and March 2022. The study adopted VOSviewer, in conducting bibliometric analysis, and CADIMA, in conducting the systematic literature review. The bibliometric analysis findings show that entrepreneurship is being ignored among the studies investigating relationships between COVID-19 and agriculture. On top of the scarcity of entrepreneurship thrust in studies on COVID-19 and agriculture, the studies focusing on Zimbabwe are minimal. Also, the relationship between COVID-19 and agricultural entrepreneurship shows inconclusive results and methodological gaps. There is a need to cover gaps in the literature by researching Zimbabwean townships and using quantitative or mixed methodologies to triangulate existing findings in the body of knowledge. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023.

The Effect of COVID-19 on Food Consumption and Security

Agricultural and food markets were affected by the disruptions created by the restrictions on the mobility of people especially during the first lockdown in Zimbabwe from March 2020 to August 2020 and the subsequent localised lockdowns carried out in Zimbabwe. This resulted in loss of income among farmers and reduced food availability in towns. The purpose of the study was to assess the effect of Covid-19 on food security and consumption in Zimbabwe targeting Masvingo and Harare Provinces. Food consumption and security were measured using the rapid assessment method. The study used a questionnaire to obtain data on the food security and consumption from 489 respondents. The questionnaire was administered face to face. The results revealed that COVID-19 directly reduced access to food of the respondents in Harare and Masvingo province. Food insecurity in Harare and Masvingo province increased hence the need for policy makers and the donor community to assist the vulnerable people in Zimbabwe as a result of the pandemic to avoid food crisis. Results from Multinomial Logistic Regression Model established that households which are involved in informal trading and those that depend on labour income were more vulnerable resulting in reduced food consumption due to COVID-19 pandemic compared to other respondent categories. These results imply that government should prioritise households which depend on informal trading and those relying on labour income when providing safety nets during pandemics in Zimbabwe © 2022 AJHTL /Author(s)

The Effect of COVID-19 on Food Consumption and Security

Agricultural and food markets were affected by the disruptions created by the restrictions on the mobility of people especially during the first lockdown in Zimbabwe from March 2020 to August 2020 and the subsequent localised lockdowns carried out in Zimbabwe. This resulted in loss of income among farmers and reduced food availability in towns. The purpose of the study was to assess the effect of Covid-19 on food security and consumption in Zimbabwe targeting Masvingo and Harare Provinces. Food consumption and security were measured using the rapid assessment method. The study used a questionnaire to obtain data on the food security and consumption from 489 respondents. The questionnaire was administered face to face. The results revealed that COVID-19 directly reduced access to food of the respondents in Harare and Masvingo province. Food insecurity in Harare and Masvingo province increased hence the need for policy makers and the donor community to assist the vulnerable people in Zimbabwe as a result of the pandemic to avoid food crisis. Results from Multinomial Logistic Regression Model established that households which are involved in informal trading and those that depend on labour income were more vulnerable resulting in reduced food consumption due to COVID-19 pandemic compared to other respondent categories. These results imply that government should prioritise households which depend on informal trading and those relying on labour income when providing safety nets during pandemics in Zimbabwe © 2022 AJHTL /Author(s)

A rare case of EBV reactivation in an immunocompetent patient

Introduction: Hepatic involvement during an active primary Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection often results in mild, self-resolving elevation of transaminases and is associated with infectious mononucleosis (IM). EBV rarely reactivates, and most cases occur in immunocompromised individuals. We present a rare case of EBV reactivation in an immunocompetent patient only presenting with cholestatic liver injury. Case Description/Methods: A 19-year-old female with a history of resolved EBV IM one year prior presented with dark urine and jaundice. She had no fever, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, weight changes or night sweats. She had no history of illicit drug, tobacco or alcohol use, recent travel, or sick contacts. Her medications were loratadine and an OCP;she denied use of acetaminophen or herbal supplements. Family history was unrevealing. On exam she was jaundiced but otherwise normal. Initial laboratory tests showed AST 97 U/L, ALT 75 U/L, ALP 165 U/L, T-BILI 8.1 mg/dL, D-BILI 5.7 mg/dL. CT abdomen revealed splenomegaly. Work up revealed ASMA titer (1:40), but otherwise negative/ normal ANA, IgG, AMA, HCV Ab, HBV serologies, HAV IgM, CMV PCR, iron studies, tick borne serologies, SARS CoV-2 PCR, A1AT and ceruloplasmin. On the second day, the T-BILI peaked to 12.4 mg/dL, AST 151 U/L, ALT 131 U/L, ALP 237 U/L. (Fig.1) EBV serologies were positive (EBV VCA IgG >750.0 U/ml, EBV VCA IgM >160.0 U/ml), EBV viral load of 23,500 copy/ ml and negative monospot test. On day four, the LFTs improved and she was discharged. One month later LFTs had normalized, and she was asymptomatic. Discussion: EBV reactivation causing cholestatic liver injury is extremely rare in immunocompetent individuals. Furthermore, EBV-induced hepatitis is usually associated with IM but our patient's sole complaint was jaundice and dark urine. Interestingly, she had mononucleosis due to EBV one year prior with unremarkable LFTs. The fact that the hepatitis was caused by the reactivation of the virus instead of a primary infection may be the reason for lack of other symptoms. It is unclear whether EBV reactivation increases the risk of hepatitis. The diagnosis can be made without a liver biopsy if thorough work up for hepatitis is negative and the EBV serologies are positive. The disease is often self-limited and the use of antivirals is controversial and thus there is no clear indication. Our case demonstrates that EBV reactivation presenting without the 'classic' IM symptoms may be under-recognized as a cause of cholestatic liver injury. (Figure Presented).