ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Cadmium and lead concentration in rice grain, water and soil from the Anum valley irrigation project at Nobewam

The Anum Valley Rice Project which is one of the 22 active rice irrigation projects in Ghana. The Oweri and Anum rivers are the two main sources of water for this project. However, wastewater from the Mechanic shops, “Galamsey” sites and Ghana Water Company Limited are discharged into both the Oweri and Anum rivers, which are in turned used to irrigate the rice. The main objective of the study was to determine the levels of cadmium and lead concentrations in the rice grains, irrigation water and soil samples. Also, the irrigation water quality parameters like the electrical conductivity, temperature and pH were determined. The levels of these heavy metals (Cd and Pb) and irrigation water quality were compared with those of WHO/FAO recommended values. At the end of the water quality analysis the electrical conductivity (EC) values of the irrigation water ranged from 17.34 to113.6 dS/m as against the WHO/FAO recommended value of 3.0 dS/m. The pH values of the water ranged between 1.1 and 1.7 as against the WHO/FAO recommended value range of 6.5-8.4. Again, all the values were outside FAO/WHO recommended limit. Cadmium values in the water samples ranged from <0.002 to 0.063 mg/l as against the WHO/FAO recommended value of 0.01 mg/l. All the samples exceeded the FAO/WHO recommended limit with the exception of only three samples which were within the limit. Lead values in the water samples were from <0.01 to 0.372 mg/l as against the WHO/FAO recommended value of 5 mg/l. All the samples were within the FAO/WHO recommended limit. At the end of the rice grain samples analysis, cadmium levels in the rice grain recorded ranged between <0.002 mg/kg and 0.80 mg/kg as against the WHO/FAO recommended value of 0.5 mg/kg. All the rice grain samples were within the recommended value with the exception of two samples whose values exceeded the WHO value. Lead values in the rice grain ranged between <0.01 and 5.25 mg/kg as against the WHO/FAO recommended value of 3 mg/kg. All the rice grain samples were within the recommended value with the exception of three samples whose values exceeded the WHO/FAO limit. Cadmium values in the soil samples were between 0.03 mg/kg and 0.47 mg/kg as against the WHO/FAO recommended value of 3 mg/kg. All the samples were within the FAO/WHO recommended limit. Lead values were between <0.01 and 1.74 mg/kg as against the WHO/FAO recommended value of 300 mg/kg. Also, all the samples were within the FAO/WHO recommended limit. The transfer factor values for both heavy metals in the rice grain were high giving a cause for concern for consumers.

Source: KNUST
Canoe decoration in the central region: implications for Art Education

Fishing canoes in the Central Region have decorations for communicating cultural values that have implications for public education and Art education but this is not known to the general public. The public should therefore be made aware of this. The research reviewed the related literature, conducted personal interviews, identified, described, examined and analyzed the various designs and inscriptions used in decorating canoes in the Central Region. It also discussed the aesthetic and cultural values of the designs and inscriptions and determined their implications for educating the public and for Art education. The study revealed that canoes in the Central Region have been acculturated with European symbols. Most symbols have been conventionalized. The study also revealed that the introduction of outboard motors have brought a change into the canoe decoration. The sizes of canoes have been enlarged and bolder designs are now seen on them. The findings unveiled that Art historians, Art educators, historians and Anthropologists are not doing much in researching into canoe decoration.

Source: KNUST
Cancer health promotion in Ghana: A survey of community pharmacists’ perception and barriers

Available data indicate that cancer has emerged as an important cause of morbidity and mortality in Ghana. Globally, one of the interventions aimed at disease prevention is through health promotion. To our knowledge, there are no published reports examining the practices of community pharmacists towards cancer health promotion in Ghana. This study was set to examine the perception and perceived barriers of community pharmacists in the provision of cancer health promotion services in Ghana. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using electronic questionnaire to assess the perception and perceived barriers of Ghanaian community pharmacists towards provision of cancer health promotion. Key findings: The majority of community pharmacists (77.30%) believe that cancer health promotion is an important part of their daily practice. The survey participants were more likely to have a positive perception of the role of the pharmacist if they were older, male, Christian, or had completed the PharmD program (p < 0.05 for all parameters). Lack of cancer educational materials (69%) was the major perceived barrier in providing cancer health promotion services. Conclusion: Ghanaian community pharmacists recognise to play an important role in the provision of cancer health promotion serv

Source: KNUST
Capacity management using the queuing algorithm - a case study of Kasapa Telecom

Service providers, including cellular network operators, have always been challenged with balancing capacity and demand, partly due to the difficulty in predicting demand patterns. The ability to accurately forecast capacity will improve and sustain reliability and profitability for service providers. In telecommunication networks, capacity is the maximum traffic per unit of time that a given telecommunication system, subsystem, or device can carry under specified conditions. Traffic analysis and therefore capacity analysis enables you to determine the amount of bandwidth you need in your circuits for data and for voice calls to achieve already set service quality levels. The queuing model is a very useful tool in the « planning of capacity. It is in the light of the above challenges and difficulties that this study was undertaken to attempt to use the models to manage capacity of the Kasapa Telecom and to assess the service levels. It was revealed that the models can be adequately used to manage capacity in cellular systems. The current service levels of the network meet international standards. The study also revealed that the existing capacity on the network is able to meet demand in future and still maintain the service quality.

Source: KNUST
Capacitated Arc Routing Problem: Collection of Solid Waste at Kwadaso Estate, Kumasi

Solid waste management in most cities in Africa has become more challenging in which Ghana is not an exception. This is as a result of industrialization and urban migration, it has therefore become necessary to formulate a model which can be used by city authorities, Governments and waste management groups alike to use a minimal distance to collect more waste in an area. It is upon this basis why this work was done to come out with a solution that can be used to minimize the tour in a collection area and also give some sort of flow chart for the collection. In this study, we selected an area in Kumasi called Kwadaso estates which have 157 collection points and 588 240 litre bins. We first, found all pair shortest path and partitioned the entire collection points into smaller clusters based on the capacity of the vehicle and then used Ant Colony Optimization (ACO) to find the minimum tour in each cluster, which will also serve as a flow chart to guide collection in a cluster. Our study has improved the total distance by about 40% as compelled to the existing figures given by the waste management group in the area (Zoom Lion Ghana Limited).

Source: KNUST
Capital budgeting practices adopted by public and private companies in Ghana: A case study of selected companies

This research seeks to ascertain whether private and public companies within the Kumasi Metropolis adopt proper Capital budgeting practices and whether there are differences in their cost of capital computation. The researcher surveyed twenty five public companies and fifty five private companies. The questionnaire, which is the basic method of data collection, was employed to gather primary data on capital budgeting practices in Kumasi Metropolis. The study employs the frequency analysis and the Chi-Square test to come out very intriguing revelations. The critical analysis of data revealed that the commonest capital budgeting technique used by most companies are net present value, payback, accounting rate of return, internal rate of return and other unknown practices, but NPV stands tall among the lot. Moreover, the analysis also reveals that the weighted average cost of capital is the most popular model used among companies within the Kumasi metropolis. This is followed by the use of the ruling or average interest rate charged by commercial banks. Majority of respondents employs the capital asset pricing model by way of incorporating risk into their analysis to compute the minimum expected rate of return on investment projects. Key Words: Capital Budgeting Techniques, Cost of Capital, Net Present Value, Internal Rate of Return, Average Cost of Capital, Chi-Square.

Source: KNUST
Capital structure and firm performance: a comprehensive study of firms in the oil and manufacturing industry listed on the ghana stock exchange

Capital structure decisions of firms are often considered to be of so much relevance in commercial banks and any other firms as firms cannot bring to birth their viable investment project without what is considered the fuel that fuels the engine of operations of firms: capital. As a result, this study seeks to examine the impact of capital structure on the firm performance of energy and manufacturing firms listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE). Panel regression estimation techniques are used to analyze 100 firm-year observations for the period 2011 to 2020. Generally, the empirical results show that, long term debt to Total assets has a negative relationship with firm performance proxied with Return on equity, short term debt to total assets is negatively associated with energy and manufacturing firms’ profitability proxied with return on equity, total debt to total equity is negatively associated with energy and manufacturing firms’ profitability proxied with return on equity all of these were statistically significant despite the negative relationships. Based on this, the study recommended that since capital structure (short-term debt, long-term debt) have significant influence on the profitability (return on equity) of the firms, it is recommended that the management of firms to be proactive and innovative in the use or application of assets to generate higher return

Source: KNUST
Capital adequacy, cost to income ratio and performance of manufacturing firms in ghana

The study's main purpose is to investigate how capital adequacy ratio and cost to income ratio impact the financial outcome of manufacturing firms listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) from 2017 to 2022. The study adapted multiple linear regression analysis. Capital adequacy ratio was measured with equity capital to asset (ECA) and debt to equity (DE). Purposive sampling technique was used to sample five of the listed manufacturing firms as some firms did not have all the financial statements needed for this study. The study finds that the trend of the average equity capital to asset (ECA) fell from 2018 to 2022. Then the trend of average debt to equity ratio experienced an increase and decrease during the years considered for this study. The trend for the average cost to income ratio (CIR) also experienced some increase and decrease from 2017 to 2022. According to the correlation matrix, return on asset (ROA) did have a positive correlation with equity capital to asset (ECA) but a negative correlation with debt to equity (DE) and cost to income ratio (CIR). Then return on equity (ROE) had a positive correlation with debt to equity (DE) but a negative correlation with equity capital to asset (ECA) and cost to income ratio (CIR). The regression matrix concludes that ECA is significant to return on equity. In the nutshell, capital adequacy ratio (CAR) is significant to the firm performance of manufacturing firms listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange. The study recommends that study should be done on analysing the effects of Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) and Cost to Income Ratio (CIR) on Firm Performance for mining and telecommunication companies on the Ghana Stock Exchange.

Source: KNUST
Capital structure and the performance of life insurance companies in ghana: mediating role of interest rate

In Ghana, strategic decisions on the right mix of capital structure are absent among life insurance firms, enabling many life insurance companies to fall entirely into debt, adversely affecting the performance and, eventually, the survival of life insurance companies within the Ghanaian insurance market. The main objective of this study is to examine the impact of capital structure on the performance of life insurance companies in Ghana. To achieve this, the study employs the dynamic panel data model of analysis on 25 life insurance firms and time series ranging from 2015 to 2020. The study reports that the debt-to-equity ratio has a significant negative impact on the performance of life insurance firms, whereas the debt-to-asset ratio shows an insignificant negative impact on the performance of the lics. In appendage, the interest rate is reported to have an insignificant negative impact on the performance of lics. Finally, regarding the mediating role of interest rate, debt-to-equity has a significant positive impact on the performance of lics whereas debt-to-asset ratio has an insignificant positive impact on the performance of the lics in Ghana. The study, therefore, recommends that lics should consider more leverage in their capital structure decisions for improved performance.

Source: KNUST
Capital structure and firm performance: the role of corporate governance

The capital structure of a firm is crucial to its survival hence the right balance between debt and equity is important to investors. Corporate governance mechanisms are to ensure that managers make the best decision with firm finances to ensure shareholder value. This study therefore investigated the moderating effect of corporate governance mechanisms on the relationship between capital structure and firm performance. The study examined the effect of capital structure on firm performance; the moderating effect of board size on the relationship between capital structure and firm performance; the moderating effect of board independence on the relationship between capital structure and firm performance; the moderating effect of board gender diversity on the relationship between capital structure and firm performance. This research relied on data from 18 non-financial enterprises listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange. The study's data spanned the period from 2010 to 2021. The data was analysed using panel data regression techniques. The study found the following; Capital Structure was found to have a negative correlation with Return on Assets (ROA) and a positive correlation with Tobin’s Q ratio (TQ), both statistically significant, while Board Size had no moderating effect, Board Independence negatively moderated the relationship with TQ, and Board Gender Diversity had no moderating effect on the relationships between these variables. Ghanaian firms should be circumspect in their leveraging decisions. While debt can potentially enhance market valuation (as indicated by TQ), it may also put a strain on operational efficiency or profitability (as indicated by ROA). Firms must carefully assess their ability to service debt to prevent any negative impact on operational performance.

Source: KNUST
Capital structure dynamics of listed banks in Ghana

It is well known that firms are more likely to issue equity when their market values are high, relative to book and past market values, and to repurchase equity when their market values are low. We document that the resulting effects on capital structure are very persistent. As a consequence, current capital structure is strongly related to past market values. The aim of this paper is to provide a comprehensive review on Capital Structure Dynamics of Listed Banks in Ghana The study examines the significance of performance on equity and leverage. Seven (7) Banks on the Ghana Stock Exchange were used for the periods 2005 to 2012.. The study found Asset Tangibility and non-debt tax shield to have a positive relationship with equity. The study also discovered that, size of a bank was a significant determinant of equity and also has a positive association with equity. There was a positive relationship between performance and equity. There was also negative relation with Growth opportunity of a bank, Dividend policy and equity. Performance and size of a bank are the determinants of leverage. There was a statistically significant positive relation with leverage and a negative statistically significant relation with the size of a bank. The study found Leverage to have positive relation with Asset Tangibility, non-debt tax shield and Dividend ratio. The study also discovered a negative association between Growth Opportunity of a bank and Leverage.

Source: KNUST
Cape Coast Commercial Precinct

This thesis, an urban redevelopment scheme, is proposed for the commercial core of cape Coast, an old historical town of Ghana. The object of the study is basically to give a new life to the town centre and in the development process preserve a historical heritage architecturally as a pace setter to total future development of the town. It is also hoped that this urban analysis of a medium size city whose problem are similar to most town in Africa may contribute to a better understanding of the urban problems of the continent. This scheme should be realizes by the year 2030

Source: KNUST
Car wash wastewater characterization and effect on surface water quality: a case study of car washing bays sited on the banks of streams in Kumasi

A study to assess the activities of some commercial car washing bays sited along the banks of streams in Kumasi was carried out between November 2006 and June 2007. Information was gathered on wash processes, chemical use, water use, wastewater treatment, wastewater discharge and environmental awareness of operators through a questionnaire interview of 20 carwash facilities. All the 20 carwash facilities visited discharged their wastewater into the nearby stream without treatment. Two facilities which are located in Daban and Kyirepatre were selected for water quality analysis. Wastewater and stream water from these two facilities were analysed for Total Suspended Solids (TSS), Total dissolved Solids (TDS), Oil and Grease, Dissolved Phosphate, Heavy Metals (Pb, Zn, Cu, Fe), Turbidity and pH for a period of six months. The study revealed that except for pH, wastewater generated at the two facilities contained high levels of contaminants which exceeded EPA effluent limit for discharge to watercourse. Analysis of the Daban stream indicated increases in all contaminants loads 50m away after the carwash wastewater has joined the stream. In the Oda stream, only pH, turbidity and oil and grease levels were found to have increased 50m downstream. However, statistical analysis did not find any significant variation in contaminants concentrations before and after the carwash wastewater has joined the streams except for oil and grease. On the average oil and grease concentration changed from 6.4mg/l to 29.7mg/l in the Daban stream after wastewater has joined it. Heavy metals levels in both the Oda and Daban streams were within acceptable limits for crop irrigation and may not affect vegetable cultivation going on around the streams. It is evident from the study that vehicle washing on the banks of streams contribute to pollution in the streams. Operators need to be encouraged to intercept carwash wastewater to reduce pollution of water bodies.

Source: KNUST
Carbohydrate composition and amylase activity of sweet potato (ipomoea batatas) root

Selection of sweetpotato clone(s) for production and utilisation depends on its quality attributes especially sugars, dry matter, starch content and amylase activity. The levels of these attributes are however influenced by factors such as the diversified production environments, cooking treatments, and genotypic compositions. The aim of the study is to determine the range of variation and factors of significant influence on concentrations of these attributes during growth and processing of sweetpotatoes. Development of an efficient and accurate technique for rapid assessment of these quality attributes was also relevant to the study. In order to achieve the overall aim, two main approaches were adopted; varying the levels of identified factors that alter the concentration of the attributes, and using near-infrared reflectance spectroscopy technique to develop a prediction model for their assessment. Sugars (sucrose, glucose, fructose and maltose), starch, dry matter content, amylase activity and sweetness were evaluated at harvest, during heating and after cooking. Adaptive Main Effects and Multiplicative Interaction (AMMI) model was employed to ascertain the magnitude of interactions between the factors tested. It was established that concentrations of the quality attributes were significantly affected by all the factors examined. Genotype contributed the highest variability during the growth stage while cooking treatment produced the highest effect during processing. Effect of interaction was more pronounced on amylase activity compared to sugars, dry matter and starch content. Sucrose was the predominant sugar in the raw form while levels of maltose increased substantially during cooking. High precision calibration was also developed for evaluating sugars and starch content in cooked sweetpotato roots. Sweetpotato varieties in Ghana have a wide range of quality attributes, making it a versatile crop for many food applications. Nonetheless recommendation for specific application should consider choice of production environment and processing conditions, which have significant impact on the final quality of the processed product

Source: KNUST