ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
‘’Les Ennemis de la Femme dans Faceless et Beyond the Horizon d'Amma Darko "

Against the background of the general accusation, especially by feminists, that men create to the largest extent the feminine condition and for that matter are the worst enemies of women, we studied the enemies of women as painted by Amma Darko in Faceless and Beyond the Horizon. We started the study with the accusation as our hypothesis with a view to substantiating or refuting it. In the course of the-analysis, we studied the various instances of oppression to which men have subjected women. We discovered, on the superficial plane of analysis, that the dominant picture was that of men as oppressors and exploiters of women. However, a deeper reflection revealed that women themselves contribute enormously towards their own condition, notably through their complicity via, among others, quasi-absolute dependence on man for survival and instincts for direction, inaction, as well as improper choices and excessive censure of patriarchy as an impersonal system. Again, we discovered that certain neutral factors (though not absolutely free from the control of human agents) such as the family, tradition, human nature, the economic situation, patriarchy as a force, as well as immigrant and racial policies, have a role to play to configure the feminine condition. Thus, the hypothesis we started our study with was confirmed, though with a reservation; that although men (together with other neutral factors) appear to contribute most immensely toward the condition of women, the complicity of the tatter is enough to even threaten the assertion that men are the worst enemies of women.

Source: KNUST
Les Difficultes Du Passage De L’oral Á L’ecrit Etude De Cas De Onze Contes Akan

La littérature du monde entier, depuis La plus haute antiquité, fut orate á ses debuts. Ceci est rendu evident par le fait que l’lliade ou le Ramaya et les paroles et enseignements des savants comme Socrate ou Jèsus furent tous avant tout, des ceuvres orates. II fallut attendre l’intervention de l’imprimerie de l’écriture á différents moments, dans les différents points du monde, pour obtenir un lent passage de la Tradition orale vers la Tradition écrite, par une documentation et une recodification de ces œuvres, sous une forme écrite (transcrite). Bien que certaines sociétés africaines alent connu, comme celle des autres continents, I’écriture il y a bien longtemps, l’Afrique a choisi de conserver longtemps sa llttérature sous une forme orale - comme nous le disent des ethnolinguistes comme Genevieve Calame-Griaule ou des spéciallstes des écritures africaines comme Simon Battestini dans le but de sauvegarder sa richesse et son originalité et plus particullèrement sa nature sacrée, car pour parler comme I’ethnologue Jean Verr Chaque fois qu’un texte oral subit transformation du passage de l’oral a I’écrit, c’est l’orahté qui perd.1 En effet le message transmts n’est plus le même, parce qu’il y a tellement de difficultés a franchir qu’une traduction parfaite n’est jamais

Source: KNUST
Lessons for Construction Management in the Refurbishment of Government Funded Projects – A Case Study of State House Project (Job 600).

Many companies engaged in construction projects often come across both formal and informal lessons which are often poorly coordinated or documented with regards to the effort to obtain lessons learned for construction management and dissemination as well as their usage. Recognizing such constraints necessitate discussions on key characteristics that relate to lessons learned for construction management of projects. This research work was carried out to investigate the lessons learned for construction management in the refurbishment of Government funded building projects, using the Conversion of the State House Building into Offices for the Parliament of Ghana (PoG), popularly called Job 600, as a Case Study to allow for continuous improvement in the industry. Grounded on the literature, a questionnaire was designed containing information on the challenges in the construction management of job 600 project as well as measures to mitigate the identified challenges. A survey questionnaire was conducted among construction professionals Contractor, Sub-contractors, Consultant, Implementation Technical Committee (ITC), Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing (MWRWH) as Sponsor and PoG (End User) represented by their Technical Outfit (Development Office) who were purposively selected to elicit information pertaining to the study. Results indicate that funding for undertaking the project was limited and payment of contractor and Consultant delayed. Also, poor planning and inadequate preparations for project construction, incidence of poor planning towards project execution, incidence of lack of planning for facility maintenance and management, design and documentation deficiency were identified as the major challenges encountered. It is recommended that adequate project feasibility studies, adequate project initiation documentations, and effective communication among client, consultant and contractor as well as sufficient funding for project construction should largely be considered. Keywords: Construction management, practices, challenges, measures

Source: KNUST
Letter-Image Configuration

Is a letter a symbol or an image? Are letters symbols or images? What is the relationship between letters and images? What have these two in common; can they be used together under any circumstance? These questions are some of the problems the researcher attempts to find solutions to in the project: “Letter Image Configuration”. This paper examines the relationship between letters and images and the various ways they can be combined as elements of design for the production of a work of art; specifically painting. The rationale for the project is to expand the didactic and aesthetic dimensions of art by establishing relationships between letter and image. The thesis is divided into four chapters as follows: I INTRODUCTION AND LITERATURE REVIEW. The introduction deals with the definition and objectives of the project, the statement of problems, the importance and the scope of the research, the research methodology and a review on what other theorists or artists have done and written over the years concerning the topic. II EXPERIMENTAL SURVEY This chapter offers a general report on the experimental survey — the preliminary paintings undertaken during year one examining on canvas and paper the relationship between letters and images. III ANALYTICAL STUDY OF LETTER - IMAGE PAINTINGS The third chapter deals with analysis of paintings submitted for the research; the analysis involves a general appraisal of the development of ideas and how these influenced the paintings and the techniques used to create them. IV CONCLUSION The conclusion chapter summarises and evaluates the result of the analysis with the set objective, scope and limitation of the project. Through the analysis of various Letter-Image paintings, it is believed that the project would correct some of the ambiguities and help give viewers clear interpretations of paintings, characterised by images.

Source: KNUST
A lettering manual for Junior Secondary School teachers

The government of Ghana, has embarked on an educational reform which is focused on the restructure and the organisation of the content of the secondary school curriculum in a bid to gear education towards national development. Lettering still forms part of the art curriculum and this shows how important the subject is to national development. It, therefore, has to be handled with all diligence and skill. Taking J.S.S. teachers into consideration, one would notice that not all vocational skills or art teachers, for that matter, studied lettering during their training. Thus it becomes difficult to present the subject to the students the way it should be done. This manual, therefore, seeks to help the vocational skills teacher teach more effectively. The basic structure for both the upper case and lower case letters is discussed. The processes by which letters are extended and condensed are also discussed. The manual also has a documentation of five letter styles (both serif and sans serif). The writer dwells briefly on numerals and also gives an introduction to calligraphy. The teacher who uses this manual would enjoy teaching lettering better since he or she would have various aspects of the subject to explore. Students who go through the step by step instructional programme provided in the manual would be able to do mini jobs involving lettering after graduation. The knowledge and skill they would acquire would help them perform excellently after having some experience with way side artists or artists in general. Bettor skills in lettering will go a long way to make written scripts, posters arid banners more attractive and easier to read and comprehend. In the long run, lettering will play its role in national development.

Source: KNUST
The Level of Compliance with the Transparency Provisions in the Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663) by the Colleges Of Education in the Ashanti Region Of Ghana

The Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663) was introduced to improve financial management and judicious use of state resources. However, procurement entities in the public sector, especially the Colleges of Education, have been said to perform poorly in complying with the procurement provisions in the Act. Though transparency is one of the key objectives of Act 663, provisions which deal with it are not explicitly seen from the Act. This poses a challenge in assessing compliance by procurement entities. This study, therefore, highlights the transparency provisions and assesses the level of compliance by the Colleges of Education in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. A review of past research revealed an absence of a specific tool for assessment of the transparency provisions in Act 663. This lack was, therefore, addressed at the initial stages of the study. Tender Committees in the Colleges were then interviewed using the tool developed to ascertain the transparency provisions and questionnaires were used to collect data to measure the compliance level. The data were analysed through percentages, descriptive statistics, statistically significant tests and factor analysis using SPSS and Microsoft Excel. The study revealed that the transparency provisions in Act 663 constituted about 27% of the total provisions in the Act. Two tools, one based on parts provided for in the Act and the other based on themes identified across the various parts of the Act can be used to assess transparency. The average percentage level of compliance with the transparency provisions in Act 663 among the study population was 77.4%. The study concluded that the procurement entities in the Colleges of Education complied with the transparency provisions in Act 663 though they faced certain challenges which include high cost in advertising procurement, delays by the PPA in approving single-source procurement, low patronage of tender due to unattractive packages, and delays in procurement proceedings through ordinary mailing of correspondence. It is recommended that approval of single-source procurement should be expedited; attendance by tenderers to tender opening should be mandatory and cluster procurement should be encouraged.

Source: KNUST
Lettering, Poster-Making and Printmaking for Secondary Schools

Graphic Design is a major discipline in the Art Education programme in secondary schools. The variety of guises this art from assumes makes it one of the most blatantly influential. And Graphic Design is the one disciplines the thrives on rapid changes. Its importance in a rapidly developing society such as Ghana’s cannot be overlooked. Over the years, however, the difficulty encountered by teachers in teaching this subject well has in no small way contributed to a general lack of interest in its study by students, and consequently, the low popularity it commands in secondary schools. Lack of suitably simplified Graphic Design textbooks tailored for second cycle schools, and the high cost of tools and materials for the study of the subject are among the prime reasons underlying its poor teaching and learning in these schools. These reasons, and many others, have necessitated the writing of this all-in-on textbook. The essay covers three major areas in Graphic Design, namely: Lettering, Poster-making and Printmaking. These are treated in three parts made up of five chapters. Part one covers Pen Lettering, Block Lettering and Roman Lettering respectively, in three chapters. Part two deals with Poster-making and part three, Printmaking in a single chapter. The writer strongly believes that a simplified Graphic Design handbook such as this study would facilitate the teaching of the subject and hasten the learning of it by students.

Source: KNUST
Level of knowledge and usage of safety control tools and techniques by building contractors in Ghana

The construction industry has been recognized as one of the most hazardous industries in the economy. In recent times, health and safety continues to be a major challenge in the construction industry. With the use of safety control tools and techniques by building contractors, accidents can be significantly minimized and hence ensuring safety in the construction industry. The aim of this study is to explore the level of knowledge and usage of safety control tools and techniques by contractors in Ghana and to identify practical safety control measures required to improve safety in building construction sites in Ghana. The study utilized survey questionnaires designed using factors identified from review of extant literature on the topic and preliminary survey to elicit the perceptions on health and safety control tools and techniques from respondents. Descriptive statistics and relative important index was utilized for analyzing the data generated. The findings of the study revealed that majority of the surveyed respondents of the study have knowledge about the process statistical analysis and reporting methods employed in the construction industry. Moreover majority of the respondents also believe their respective construction companies seldom conduct safety hazard risk analysis. The use of flowcharting and statistical sampling and testing were top ranked among the safety control measures required to improve safety in building construction sites in Ghana. The findings of the study will be of use to construction professionals seeking innovative measures to improve health and safety on their construction sites. It is therefore recommended that the construction industry give keen attention to Health and Safety Control tools and techniques.

Source: KNUST
Level of Knowledge and Usage of Safety Assurance Tools and Techniques by Building Contractors in Ghana

Despite the enormous contributions of construction industry to the development of economies, the industry is also saddled with risk and safety issues among other things. Consequently, the industry has been tagged as volatile contributing to highest number of fatalities; and the situation is worse in the Ghanaian Construction Industry. As a result, several safety measures have been put in place to somewhat curb the level of accidents. The study is tailored to aim at improving safety assurance of contractors in Ghana. A mixed methodology approach was used to gather data on the subject area. The study employed questionnaire survey to elicit views on the subject area from construction professionals within the outfit of D1K1 and D2K2 contractors. Subsequently, the data gathered was analysed using descriptive statistics. The dependent variables were analysed using Relative Index (RI), mean score and standard deviations to examine the extent of agreement amongst the various respondents. Overall, the findings revealed a low level of awareness of safety assurance tools and techniques. More so, safety assurance practices in the various companies were identified to be low. In summary, respondents are not committed to safety assurance on construction sites. The study recommends among other things, the need for the establishment of a central agency with legislative authority to enforce safety assurance in the Ghanaian construction industry. The study explored the relatively grey area of safety practices in the Ghanaian construction industry and adds to the already existing knowledge in the discipline.

Source: KNUST
Level of knowledge and usage of safety planning tools and techniques by building contractors in Ghana

The daily report on accidents and death issues in the Ghanaian construction industry is worrying. This has a major cost implication on the construction industry in Ghana as well as on the economy of the nation. It is for these reasons that this report sought to identify ways to improve upon safety planning and implementation by contractors in Ghana. This was done by first exploring the level of knowledge of the Ghanaian contractors on safety tools and techniques as well as the level of usage of these tools. To do this, a questionnaire survey was carried out on 40 contractors in the Upper East Region. The 40 contractors were selected through purposive sampling. The survey revealed that the level of knowledge and usage of the following tools and techniques in safety planning was quite high: Cost benefit analysis, Benchmarking, Trails and simulation, Flowcharting and Process mapping. Contractors however suggested the following as points to improve upon safety planning: Employee involvement in safety planning, all information on hazardous substance should be registered and assessed in a central catalog, Contractor’s current and past safety performance history should be examined. However, it was observed that project safety requirement review and risk management process tools and techniques were not employed by most contractors. Therefore it is recommended that contractors should review project to identify risky areas and plan towards reducing or eliminating these risk, regular and strict supervisions should be carried out by the authorities in the required institutions of health and safety, and also contractors should review projects to identify the residual risk so as to consider them in future projects.

Source: KNUST
Level of Organochlorine Insecticide Residues in Keitt Variety of Mango (Mangifera Indica) Fruits from the Dangme West District of Ghana

Level of organochlorine insecticide residues in mango fruits in Dangme West District of Ghana was studied. Fifty farmers were interviewed on the insecticide use practices. A total of 100 mango fruits were randomly sampled from nine conventional farms, one non-sprayed farm and two markets (in Accra and Tema). These were analyzed by gas chromatography equipped with electron capture detector for organochlorine residues. Residues detected in the mango fruits were within the European Union’s recommended Maximum Residual Limits. This indicates that the fruits are safe for consumption. However, the detection of organochlorine residues implies that these chemicals are still present in the environment. Heptachlor was highest in all three locations. The persistent nature of these chemicals is also evident as residues of alpha-HCH, gamma-HCH, delta-HCH, aldrin, heptachlor, trans-chlordane, trans-Nonachlor and o,p-DDT were detected in fruits from unsprayed farm. Residues of alpha – HCH, Endrin, Dieldrin , cis –Heptachlor epoxide, trans –Heptachlor epoxide, Hexachlorobenzene, trans – Nonachlor, o,p-DDE, p,p-DDE and o,p-DDD showed significant differences at all the three sampling locations at p<0.05. Farmers are also exposed to health risk as a result of inappropriate use of Personal Protective Equipment. Farmers also have difficulty in disposing off waste water for washing the spraying machine. Disposal of waste water into open canals can contaminate rivers and ground water. There's need for constant monitoring since there could be bioaccumulation of residues in the food chain when fruits are consumed over a long period.

Source: KNUST
Levels of contaminants in used motor oil and their potential effect on the environment

Motor oil used by internal combustion engines requires replacement over a period due to contamination that affects its lubricating functions. The used motor oil finally ends up in the environment, whose physicochemical compositions are unknown to determine the impact. This thesis contains information concerning the environmental impact associated with used motor oil. Some of the various ways by which it enters the environment were reviewed. The physicochemical properties (heavy metals, volatile aromatic hydrocarbons, total petroleum hydrocarbons, H2S, density, specific gravity, water content, viscosity, pour point, flash point, soot content, and colour), determined by collecting ten used motor oil samples each from private and commercial vehicles and two samples of fresh motor oil for petrol and diesel engines using the American Standard for Testing Measurement (ASTM) are as described. The results showed that the used oils recorded high levels of contaminants above the EPA maximum permissible limit for waste oils. Again the commercial vehicles recorded high levels of contaminants in the used oils than the private vehicles. It can be concluded that motor oils have significant amount of harmful substances and metals, and therefore must be treated to reduce these contaminants levels before they are reused or final disposal into the environment.

Source: KNUST
Levels of Heavy Metals and Oil and Grease in the Rivers Panmu and Ankodee

This study measured levels of the heavy metals; Iron, Copper, Lead and Cadmium as well as Oil and Grease in river water and sediment of the Rivers Panmu and Ankodee in the Dormaa Ahenkro Municipality in the Brong Ahafo, Ghana from January to March, 2012. Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (AAS) was used in the determination of heavy metals in both water and sediment samples while Partition Gravimetric Method was used in the determination of oil and grease in the water samples. Six water and sediment samples were collected from four different sites along the courses of the rivers Panmu and Ankodee within the Dormaa Ahenkro Township. Generally, levels of heavy metals in sediment samples exceeded levels in the water column. Levels of heavy metals in both water and sediment samples were high and exceeded the World Health Organisation (WHO) health-based guideline values and United States EPA sediment quality guideline for heavily polluted sites, respectively. Iron levels were extremely high compared to the other heavy metals. Oil and Grease levels were however below the Ghana EPA guidelines for effluent discharge into natural water bodies. The Rivers Panmu and Ankodee are heavily contaminated with heavy metals as refuse dumps, fuel service stations and the various scrap metal fabrication workshops are located in their watersheds.

Source: KNUST