Time to adequate weight gain and predictors among low-birth-weight preterm neonates at Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of hospitals in Bahir-Dar.

Weight gain in low birth-weight babies remains a challenge to the management of the neonatal period in low and middle-income countries like Ethiopia. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the time to adequate weight gain and its predictors among low-birth-weight preterm neonates admitted to neonatal intensive care unit of public hospitals in Bahir Dar City. An institution-based retrospective follow-up study was conducted from March 4 to April 3, 2023, using three years of data. About 344 low-birth-weight preterm babies were recruited and followed up until 28 days of age. Model goodness-of-fit was checked by Cox Snell residuals test. The Cox-Proportional Hazards Model was used to assess predictors of weight gain with a statistically significant level of P-value < 0.05. The median weight gain time was 15 days with an overall incidence density rate of 6.3 per 100 person-day of observation (95% CI 0.055, 0.071). Absence of medical problems of mothers (AHR: 1.63, 95% CI 1.015, 4.614), spontaneous vaginal mode of delivery (AHR: 1.53, 95% CI 1.028, 2.593), and long duration of labor (AHR: 3.18, 95% CI 1.579, 6.413) were significant predictors. The time of adequate weight gain was long. Early detection and management of significant predictors is recommended.

Analysis of technical efficiency of irrigated onion (Allium cepa L.) production in North Gondar Zone of amhara regional state, Ethiopia.

Onions are a significant source of revenue and food security for households. Despite their importance in human nutrition, economic benefit, and area coverage, in Ethiopia, onion productivity is significantly lower than it should be. The purpose of this study is to address this gap by examining efficiency variations and determining the variables that affect onion farmers' levels of efficiency in the North Gondar Zone of Ethiopia. The sources of data were both primary and secondary. 205 onion farmers from the Gondar Zuria, Takusa, and Dembia districts were chosen using simple random sampling proportional to sample size. Semi-structured interviews were used to gather primary data from these participants. A Cobb-Douglass production function, a single-stage stochastic frontier model, and descriptive statistics were used to investigate the technical efficiency of onion production at the farm level. The mean technical efficiency of an irrigated onion was 53%, according to the maximum likelihood estimates of the stochastic frontier analysis. By enhancing agricultural methods using current technology, it is possible to raise the average production efficiency of irrigated onions. The stochastic frontier model's maximum likelihood estimates revealed that plot size, Di Ammonium Phosphate, and oxen have a significant effect on onion output; education, livestock holding, experience, and frequency of watering have a positive and significant effect on technical efficiency, whereas family size and marketing training have a negative and significant effect on technical efficiency. Therefore, the government or any relevant bodies should deliver continual scheduled training and an integrated adult education at the existing farmers' training center; modern livestock production techniques; further groundwater resources and proper watering technologies should be used since currently farmers use an inefficient irrigation system, specifically furrow irrigation.