Accelerated socio-economic and demographic changes have led to the transformation of eating habits in sub-Saharan African cities including Dakar, Senegal. The result is the proliferation of informal fast-food establishments, such as the ‘dibiteries’ serving braised sheep meat. However, owing to poor hygiene practices, consumption of dibiterie meat poses a public health concern. It was unclear how the dibiterie meat quality and safety were perceived among customers who define their own purchasing social norms. A total of 165 meat consumers were randomly selected and interviewed, from 165 dibiteries sampled by convenience in the Dakar region using a structured questionnaire. Results showed that purchase decisions were guided by trust in the salesperson’s expertise, the taste of the product, perceived risk of meat contamination, tenderness, price, the nutritional value, the smell and the colour and freshness of the meat. The perceived quality and safety of dibiterie meat was expressed by the ‘organoleptic quality’, ‘environment and service’ and ‘price and trust of the product’s safety’ factors. The majority of consumers (61%) were ‘less concerned’ about the safety of dibiterie meat, and the acceptable price range of the product was between $5.08 and $7.62. As this food product is gaining popularity in Dakar and the majority of our participating consumers do not show high levels of concern, we suggest stricter standards.

Background: In recent years, a profound transformation has been observed in the eating habits of the populations of African cities, induced by accelerated socioeconomic and demographic growth. In Senegal, these changes have manifested in the proliferation of collective informal catering enterprises, such as the ' ', where the roasted meat of sheep is dibiteries prepared and sold. The rise of the average household income has contributed substantially to increasing levels of meat consumption, leading to the expansion of the . The purpose of the current work was to dibiteries evaluate the managerial performance of these establishments in Dakar, Senegal. Methods: To achieve this, a cross-sectional study was conducted among 152 using a questionnaire. Efficiency scores were determined via dibiteries the data envelopment analysis method. The pure technical scores thereby obtained were subsequently used as dependent variables in a Tobit model to identify the socioeconomic determinants of efficiency. dibiterie Results: The resulting average score of the suggests that the dibiteries majority are operating inefficiently (79.6%). Moreover, it was demonstrated that this inefficiency seems to be related to scale rather than technical issues. However, few of the assessed (20.4%) were nevertheless dibiteries in a situation of constant scale economy. Among the socioeconomic variables tested, experience, leadership (family or individual-run), the ownership status of the restaurant building (own or lease) and the type of workforce (family, recruited, mixed or without) had a significant impact on the efficiency of the establishments. Conclusions: The scale economy and waste reduction in food production can result in economic gains that can in turn be used in the safety of finished products. Indeed, by following best practices, can make dibiteries gains which could be used to invest in good hygiene practices on AAS Open Research gains which could be used to invest in good hygiene practices on handwashing, cleaning and disinfecting grilling tools, optimizing work space and training staff.The paper is focused on estimating technical and scale efficiency in "dibiteries" of the region around Dakar (Senegal). Although the methodology has been widely applied in the economic literatureespecially in agriculture and agro-food sectors -the paper appears sufficiently original because it is one, or the unique, case of efficiency analysis applied at this sort of activity. Objectives are clearly illustrated, methodology is correctly applied, results are well showed, and discussion is congruent with findings.

A cross-sectional study was conducted in Senegal in May 2015 on the microbial quality of roasted sheep meat in 40 selected dibiteries, which are informal and small fast-food restaurants offering roasted sheep meat to Senegalese consumers. An intervention was designed and implemented in these 40 dibiteries and coupled with an appraisal of the economic managerial performance of those restaurants to improve their hygiene management practices. The microbiological quality of roasted mutton was assessed 1 month before the intervention and then 2 and 10 months post-intervention. Three types of dibiteries were identified among the 40 units studied based on their production process: Senegalese (42.5%), Mauritanian (40%), and Nigerien (17.5%). Of all samples analyzed, 70% were considered satisfactory regarding the levels of contamination at baseline; satisfactory scores rose to 75% at 2 months post-intervention and 83% at 10 months post-intervention. However, those differences were not statistically significant. The financial appraisal revealed that the performance of dibiteries before and after the intervention remained the same with no significant difference in the gross margins. Further studies are needed to understand compliance behavior and incentives that enhance the sustainability of hygiene management practices in the informal retail food sector.

ackground and Aim: Several factors contribute to the unusual incidence of antibiotic resistance, which is now a primary public health concern. However, failure in managing preventive and therapeutic antibiotic use on farms is one of the most crucial factors. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the biosecurity of farms, farmers' competence, and practices related to antibiotics and their resistance in poultry and pig rearing in Togo. Materials and Methods: Through a cross-sectional survey, 121 commercial poultry farmers and 97 commercial pig farmers were questioned to evaluate the biosecurity of farms and farmers' competence and practices related to antibiotics and antibiotic resistance. Descriptive analyses, including the evaluation of proportions, were carried out. In addition, results from qualitative factors were evaluated in a defined grid and totaled up to assess cleanliness measures, awareness, and behavior regarding antibiotics and their resistance. Results: The results demonstrated that most farmers working on poultry farms had a university education, while most working on pig farms had secondary education. Most poultry (69%) and pig (44%) farms were of small sizes (<1000 animals in poultry and <10 animals in pig farming). The footbaths were used in just 51% of poultry farms and 4% of pig farms, respectively, with 37% and 82% of poultry and pig farms having inadequate levels of hygiene. In poultry farms, respiratory issues and periodic decline in egg-laying were the main problems. Simultaneously, skin disorders (scabies) and plagues (African swine fever) were the primary health constraints in pig farming. Tetracycline is the most commonly used antibiotic by farmers. However, in poultry and pig farms, 21% and 67% of farmers were unaware of antibiotics. In addition, 39% and 57% were unaware of antibiotic resistance. Poultry and pig farmers' competence were substantially linked to their education level. Poultry farmers demonstrated better practices, including procuring antibiotics based on veterinary prescriptions (63%) and they knew where antibiotics should be bought (90%). Nevertheless, 43% of farmers asserted unpleasant activities – no application for laboratory testing (93%) and use of antibiotics for prevention (82%). In pig farming, most farmers (69%) reported inadequate incidents of the use of antibiotics. Conclusion: This study identified a crucial non-compliance with biosecurity measures and good practices toward antibiotic use on many farms. Therefore, training of farmers is mandatory for safe livestock products.

Hygiene is the most useful public health measure for preventing infections of important endemic and emerging diseases of global significance. This study aimed to assess the impact of these public health preventive measures on dirty hand diseases. A retrospective survey was conducted in the rural general hospitals of Taabo (south-central Côte d’Ivoire) and Marcory (urban Abidjan) to collect clinical data on dirty hand diseases in the patients’ records from 2013 to 2020. In addition, focus group discussions (N = 8) were conducted in the communities in both settings to identify the sociocultural and economic hindering or fostering factors that affected the adoption of and the compliance with handwashing and disinfection practices. A total of 3245 and 8154 patients’ records were examined in the general hospitals of Taabo and Marcory, respectively. Compared with women, men were more affected by typhoid fever (OR, 0.68 [95%CI, 0.53–0.88]) and influenza (OR, 0.87 [95%CI, 0.75–1]). Hygiene measures promoted during Ebola and COVID-19 outbreaks had no impact on the prevalence of typhoid fever in both settings; however, a positive impact was observed regarding influenza infections. Populations were aware of the importance of handwashing for public health but had difficulties adhering due to financial constraints, access to drinking water, and the absence or scarcity of handwashing facilities.