ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Stakeholder management practices of road construction works in Ghana. ‘A case study of bitumen surfacing of Dwamenase-Abompeadasawase-Anyinam Feeder Road with two other roads

Road construction works involves a sequence of complex operations. In Road construction works, engaging stakeholders before the start of the project is essential. Ghana’s road projects are no different from this scenario. The road project traverses in various communities thereby affecting community people directly. It is therefore essential for effective stakeholder management on Ghana’s road projects to maintain an appropriate equilibrium between stakeholders’ interests. The research therefore adopted the Bitumen Surfacing of Dwamenase-Abompe-Adasawase-Anyinam Feeder Road(16.95km) and other two Road Project as Case Study to achieve its objectives such as intensification of critical external stakeholder needs in road construction works in Ghana, identification of stakeholder management practices in road construction works and the extent to which those practices meet external stakeholder expectations. The aim of the research is to analyze stakeholder management practices in road construction works in Ghana. The researcher adopted the Quantitative Research Method for the study. Sample size of one hundred and (150) responses was obtained using a simple random sampling. Census approach was used for the analysis of the responses from the internal stakeholders. The sampling research instrument used for the responses from the internal stakeholders included the use of the Kendall’s mean rank test to rank the needs of the external stakeholders from the responses, relative importance index in determining the level of importance of the stakeholder management practices on the road project to meet the stakeholder’s expectations. The findings of the stakeholder need identification are; Build and maintain mutual trust relationship and others. In meeting the external stakeholders’ expectations based on stakeholder management practices on a road project in Ghana, it was found out in the research that; Conflict should be resolved in a timely manner among stakeholders on the road project. It is therefore concluded that the findings of this research should be apply to Ghana’s road project to help the smooth implementation of road projects within budget and on schedule. It is also recommended that Ghana’s Road Agencies takes key interest and apply the stakeholder management practices in the findings of this research on their Projects.

Source: KNUST
Stakeholder management practices of the forestry Commission: a case study of the youth in afforestation Programme.

The Forest Commission in the Bono Region of Ghana face challenges from different people and groups by serving multiple stakeholders with potentially conflicting needs and interests. The study examined the stakeholder management practices of the forestry commission: a case study of sustainable development in the youth in afforestation program. Purposive sampling was used to select the (10) stakeholder organizations comprising of 10 Project/Program managers from the various public authorities, ten (10) Heads of Organizations/other senior staff , fifteen (15) traditional rulers and ten (10) opinion leaders (Assembly members and Chiefs) representing the five communities. Structured questionnaire was used to obtain information from the respondents while semi structured questionnaire was used to elicit information from traditional rulers and opinion leaders from the various community. It was revealed that though there are common interests, stakes and responsibilities shared by the various stakeholders, there are many and conflicting interests indeed, enough to make a clearer understanding of any trade-offs equally complex and confusing to ordinary none professional actors of the sector. This was followed by an assessment of the various management practices implored or expected to be used by the Forestry Commission in managing their stakeholders, from which came out a number of revelations prominent among which were: one stop Stakeholder identification and analysis, no or less technical Stakeholder Categorization, planning and engagements and communication. And here again, the findings revealed that the Forest Industry is highly dependent on human numbers and for that matter collaboration and networking for its operations and success. The study concluded that many challenges encountered were due to youth allowance delays, conflict of interest, high cost management, lack of social drive and limited understanding and appreciation of the Iiiiv afforestation project in sustainable development of the communities because it does not yield bread and butter to meet the immediate needs of beneficiaries but rather some intangible long yielding deliverables. The researcher recommend that stakeholder management practice should always look at the holistic development or the bigger picture of the communities and to avoid seeking individual or personal gains as the reasons for their participation in project implementation, additionally, all relevant stakeholders should always be identified from project inception and all partnering, collaborative and other terms well explained to all stakeholders at all levels.

Source: KNUST
Stakeholder management practices: case study of marine rehabilitation project at Ghana Ports and Harbour Authority (Takoradi shipyard)

Stakeholder management is a vital activity, using simple procedures and investing a modest effort can make a big difference to the eventual success of the project simply by understanding the stakeholders and what they want. Communications with stakeholders who have high levels of interest and influence will be managed differently from those with stakeholder of low interest and influence. This study seeks to examine the stakeholder management practices implemented in marine rehabilitation projects activity in Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority – Takoradi shipyard, challenges of stakeholder management, causes of the identified challenges as well as to provide recommendations on strategies for effective stakeholder management. The research design for this study is of quantitative type, this study used descriptive statistics to achieve its objectives. The key findings of this study are: the critical challenges of stakeholder management practices at Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, Takoradi shipyard in their order of ranking of occurrence include unclear stakeholders, negative community reactions to the project, Inadequate resources assigned to the project, changes in scope of work and lack of support from stakeholders. The study found several causes of the identified challenges which includes poor planning, lack of human personnel and lack of effective communication. The study also found several proposed strategies for effective stakeholder management including effective planning, effective communication and effective stakeholder engagement.

Source: KNUST
Stakeholder management strategies adopted by Sekondi-Takoradi metropolitan assembly for urban development grant (UDG) projects.

The research aimed at investigating Stakeholder Management Strategies adopted by SekondiTakoradi Metropolitan Assembly for Urban Development Grant (UDG) Projects. In achieving this aim, the objectives set were; to identify steps adopted in stakeholder management; to identify challenges associated with stakeholder management; and to identify causes of the challenges associated with stakeholder management by Sekondi-Takoradi metropolitan assembly. The research adopted the quantitative strategy, data was obtained using questionnaire. The total population was 185, Kish formula was used in obtaining the sample size of 72, and 60 respondents helped in achieving the aim of the research. The data was analyzed and presented with the aid of Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS) and Microsoft Excel software’s (using the Mean score ranking and Relative importance index (RII). The study revealed that planning of stakeholder management, identification of stakeholders and controlling of stakeholder’s engagement were the most effective steps adopted in stakeholder management strategies. In the second objective, poor communication among stakeholders, poor strategies during stakeholder’s management, lack of stakeholder support, hiring a project management with high competency and excessive political interference were also the major challenges associated with stakeholder management strategies. Low level of understanding among stakeholders, high level of disagreement among stakeholders, inconsistent communication among stakeholders and unavailability of resources were the main causes of challenges were chosen by respondents that needed effective attention to be resolved. Lastly, the study revealed stakeholders being included in the project process, firm agreeing with stakeholders in finding solutions, ensuring that there are enough resources for stakeholders during a project and lastly ensuring good relationships among stakeholders as the important strategies that could reduce the challenges. These were the main strategies selected by respondents to help reduce these challenges and causes of challenges, and there were other helpful strategies that were chosen as the least strategies.

Source: KNUST
Stakeholder Management Practices: Case Study of Marine rehabilitation Project at Ghana Ports and Harbour authority (Takoradi Shipyard)

ii ABSTRACT Stakeholder management is a vital activity, using simple procedures and investing a modest effort can make a big difference to the eventual success of the project simply by understanding the stakeholders and what they want. Communications with stakeholders who have high levels of interest and influence will be managed differently from those with stakeholder of low interest and influence. This study seeks to examine the stakeholder management practices implemented in marine rehabilitation projects activity in Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority – Takoradi shipyard, challenges of stakeholder management, causes of the identified challenges as well as to provide recommendations on strategies for effective stakeholder management. The research design for this study is of quantitative type, this study used descriptive statistics to achieve its objectives. The key findings of this study are: the critical challenges of stakeholder management practices at Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, Takoradi shipyard in their order of ranking of occurrence include unclear stakeholders, negative community reactions to the project, Inadequate resources assigned to the project, changes in scope of work and lack of support from stakeholders. The study found several causes of the identified challenges which includes poor planning, lack of human personnel and lack of effective communication. The study also found several proposed strategies for effective stakeholder management including effective planning, effective communication and effective stakeholder engagement.

Source: KNUST
Stakeholders engagement practices in the public budget preparation process; a case study of the Sekondi Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly

Stakeholders’ Engagement has become an important part of public service at both the national and the local levels. In public financial management, regular stakeholders’ engagement seen as a measure of transparency and accountability. To guarantee citizens ownership of budgets and to obtain their support during implementation, stakeholders’ engagement during the budget preparation stage considers an important practice. Ghana’s budgeting system require citizens’ participation and engagement during the budget preparation process. District Assemblies are require by existing legal framework, manuals, and guidelines to engage a number of internal and external stakeholders in the preparation of a District Budget. As to whether this important requirement is adhered to during budget preparation was the focus of this study. The study was on the topic; Stakeholders Engagement Practises in The Public Budget Preparation Process in The Sekondi Takoradi Metropolis. The study adopted questionnaires and interview as the data collection instruments and qualitative method was used to analyze collected data. Given that budgets are managed in cycles, a case study research design was adopted to allow detail study of budget management issues. Data was collected from both primary and secondary data sources. Purposive Sampling Technique was adopted to select respondents who have the experience and participation in the metropolis. The study results show that stakeholders’ engagement in the metropolis is centered around the heads of departments and the technical offices as compared to the people budgets seek to develop. Stakeholders’ engagement is not based on proper planning; staff of the Budget Office do not have the right capacity to engage. Stakeholders’ identification is centered on stakeholders relevant to local revenue mobilization. This is leaving out a significant number of stakeholders needed to enrich our budgets. The community level structures needed to engage are not established. Zonal Councils and Units Committees are not established to facilitate engagement. For a budget to be accepted by the people, the preparation process of that budget need to be more engaging than it is now

Source: KNUST
Stakeholders’ Perception of Construction Project Success at Asutifi North District Assembly.

Stakeholders in construction projects play important roles which need much emphasis. The high failure rate of major projects has been attributed to lack of attention to stakeholders. Thus, specific aim of this study was to examine the perception of stakeholders on success of construction projects in the District Assembly. With this aim, various objectives were set which included the identification of common stakeholders in a construction project at the District Assembly level, the identification of the key success criteria and the identification of the stakeholders’ perception of construction projects success in the district assembly as well as the challenges hindering the achievement of the success criteria. In order to achieve these objectives, the research adopted the use of review of literature and questionnaire survey which was designed for respondents to indicate their views on construction project success as well the challenges. It was revealed that, Internal Stakeholders of the District who have higher stakes when it comes to construction project success classified construction cost performance as the main indicator for determining the success of every project whilst External Stakeholders who are the eventual end users of the project critically considered the quality performance criterion. Interestingly, cost performance criterion was ranked 1st amongst all by both categories of respondents. The research discovered several challenges hindering the achievement of the construction projects success of which 61.81% of the respondents indicated that the revealed challenges really and actually affected the project delivery success. The recommendation made was that leaders of project teams (project manager) must make it a priority to identify the stakeholders in the project, determine and understand their necessities and perceptions of project success and try to meet those needs. Moreover, all relevant stakeholders at the District Assembly level should be well informed and be involved in the planning and implementation of construction projects to ensure its success.

Source: KNUST
Stakeholder participation in development planning process in the Yilo Krobo Municipality

People‟s participation is critical for development. The notion of people's participation in their development has been gaining momentum in the process of human empowerment and development. Decentralization has been advocated by development partners, development agencies and developing nations as an important mechanism for broadening citizen participation and improving local governance. Ghana‟s decentralisation policy emphasises grassroots participation in decision-making process at the local level. Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) are enjoined by law to involve local communities and other stakeholders in the process of planning and implementation of development projects in their areas of jurisdiction. The study was therefore conducted to assess the level of participation of stakeholders in the development planning process and identify the major factors that affect the extent of grassroots participation in the planning process in the Yilo Krobo Municipality. The research procedure adopted two levels of data collection, namely the municipal and community levels by using both qualitative and quantitative methods for analysis. The case study approach was identified as the appropriate methodology for the research. Specifically, review of secondary data, structured and semi- structured interviews and community meetings were conducted to collect required data for analysis. The result of the study established that the Municipal Planning Co -ordinating Unit (MPCU) of the Assembly has high calibre of staff and the required logistical support. Additionally, participation of Assembly and Unit Committee members in decision-making and the planning process is relatively high. The study also revealed however, that poor communication, ignorance of the importance of planning, partisan politics, inadequate accountability and excessive bureaucracy are the key factors that militate against effective community engagement in the decision making process. Further, it was established that all the seven (7) Zonal Councils in the municipality were not functioning due to lack of office accommodation, permanent staff and logistical support. It is therefore recommended among others that the Assembly must undertake effective stakeholder analysis to establish who, how, when and at what level they should be involved in the planning process in the municipality. It must also constitute, resource, train and operationalise the Zonal Councils to make them functional. These among others are deemed essential for promoting participation in the governance of development in the Yilo Krobo Municipality.

Source: KNUST
Stakeholders’ knowledge, implementation and challenges of inclusive Education in Kindergartens in Ejisu – Ashanti

Inclusive Education has become necessary in the 21st century classroom with the changing needs of society. This means that kindergarten education should be considered to enable the children (age 4-5) with disabilities associate and learn with their counterparts without disabilities in the first stage of their education. Although studies have been conducted on Inclusive Education in Ejisu, very little is known about stakeholders’ (teachers, parents and pupils) knowledge, implementation and challenges in Inclusive Education in Kindergartens. The research adopted qualitative as well as quantitative method to study the knowledge that stakeholders (teachers, parents and pupils) have, the implementation and challenges of inclusive education in the kindergartens. Ejisu M/A Model Primary School, Ejisu M/A Experimental Primary school and Ejisu Presbyterian Primary School were selected with a total population of 881 for the studies. Both primary and secondary sources of data were used for the study. The instruments for the data collection were interview, questionnaire and observation with the use of simple random sampling and purposive sampling for the selection of the sample size of 268 from the population of the study. Data was analyzed using quantitative and qualitative analytical methods; descriptive statistics was mainly used for the quantitative and thematic analysis was used for the qualitative responses. Data gathered revealed that stakeholders (teachers, parents and pupils) have knowledge on Inclusive Education. However, parents who have children with disability have more knowledge on Inclusive Education unlike those without children with disability. Even though teacher’s knowledge on Inclusive Education was about children who have intellectual and physical disabilities and not including the economically impoverished, normadic children, gifted children among others as stated in the Inclusive Education policy of Ghana, not all teachers included such children in the school setting. The implementation of Inclusive Education in the Kindergartens is faced with numerous challenges which include insufficient facilities, teaching and learning resources and lack of education on the part of society and many more. The study concluded that for Inclusive Education to be effective, the provisions stated in the Inclusive Education policy should be adhered to. The study also recommends further research to include other stakeholders like the education officers, health workers, District / Municipal / Metropolitan Assemblies to assess their contributions of Inclusive Education.

Source: KNUST
Standardisation of Oral Liquid Ibuprofen suspension for improved stability and efficacy

Ibuprofen is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug on the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Model list of Essential Medicines. Due to its peripheral anti-inflammatory action, ibuprofen is a useful drug in painful conditions associated with inflammation such as teething pain. This makes ibuprofen suspension one of the main analgesic, antipyretic and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs available for paediatric care on the local market. Ernest Chemists Limited (ECL) a local pharmaceutical manufacturing company in Ghana ventured into the production of ibuprofen suspension. However the product was found to be unstable after 12months under real time stability studies. The focus of this work was to find the cause(s) of the instability of the ECL ibuprofen suspension and to optimise and reformulate a standardised and stable oral ibuprofen suspension. The procedures and properties of the ECL ibuprofen suspension were reviewed by examining the suspension from the raw material stage through processing, packaging, finished product specifications and storage conditions. The effect of environmental conditions such as storage temperature and light on the suspension was also investigated. Furthermore, the effects of product specific factors, like suspension pH on the stability of the product were also investigated. It was deduced from the results of the investigations that the absence of a buffering agent and an antioxidant may have accounted for the instability of the suspension. It was proposed to include a buffering agent and antioxidant in the recommended recipe. Citric acid-sodium citrate system was selected as the buffering agent, while ascorbic acid was chosen as the antioxidant. The one variable at a time (OVAT) principle was used to optimise the new formulation. The optimisation process led to the development of nine different formulations. One of the formulations was assessed as the best and selected as the preferred standard formulation for the ibuprofen suspension which was subjected to accelerated stability studies. The standardised formulation passed the accelerated stability studies pointing to a potentially stable product.

Source: KNUST