ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Promoting sustainable construction project financing in Ghana: Critical drivers, barriers and proposed strategies

In pursuit of achieving sustainable construction of projects, the cost of constructing such projects comes with the increased cost of the project, which poses a challenge to those who are interested in sustainable construction projects. The aim of the study was exploring strategies to promote sustainable construction project financing in Ghana. The objectives set in order to achieve the aim of the study were identifying critical drivers, critical barriers of sustainable construction project financing and important strategies of promoting sustainable construction project financing. As part of the survey research technique used, a questionnaire was used to gather the views of participants. The data collected was analysed with SPSS by conducting inferential and descriptive analysis. The following were findings of the study. The critical drivers of sustainable construction project financing identified were Ethical Investment, Reduced Life Cycle Cost, Conservation of Resources, High Return on Investment and Emerging Business Opportunity. The barriers identified to be critical were Cost Related Barriers, e.g. High upfront cost, Lack of Policy direction and Regulatory gaps, Lack of Knowledge among Professionals, Inadequate Financing Schemes, Lack of Credible Database and Insufficient Government Support. Strategies that were thought to be important to promote sustainable construction project financing were: Government Support, Training and Education, Legal Framework for Sustainable Construction, Provision of incentives, e.g. Tax grants, low interest loans and Position Financial Industry to deal with Sustainable Construction. The recommendations suggested was the setting up of a green building council to oversee the transition of infrastructure in Ghana from conventional to sustainable built infrastructures. Also, there was a need for a financial institution that will cater to the financing of the construction industry in Ghana to avoid competition with other sectors of the economy from accessing capital for sustainable construction projects. Keywords: Sustainable Construction, Sustainable Construction Project Financing, Critical, Drivers, Barriers, Important, Strategies

Source: KNUST
Promoting sustainable construction project financing in Ghana: Critical Drivers, Barriers and Proposed Strategies

In pursuit of achieving sustainable construction of projects, the cost of constructing such projects comes with the increased cost of the project, which poses a challenge to those who are interested in sustainable construction projects. The aim of the study was exploring strategies to promote sustainable construction project financing in Ghana. The objectives set in order to achieve the aim of the study were identifying critical drivers, critical barriers of sustainable construction project financing and important strategies of promoting sustainable construction project financing. As part of the survey research technique used, a questionnaire was used to gather the views of participants. The data collected was analysed with SPSS by conducting inferential and descriptive analysis. The following were findings of the study. The critical drivers of sustainable construction project financing identified were Ethical Investment, Reduced Life Cycle Cost, Conservation of Resources, High Return on Investment and Emerging Business Opportunity. The barriers identified to be critical were Cost Related Barriers, e.g. High upfront cost, Lack of Policy direction and Regulatory gaps, Lack of Knowledge among Professionals, Inadequate Financing Schemes, Lack of Credible Database and Insufficient Government Support. Strategies that were thought to be important to promote sustainable construction project financing were: Government Support, Training and Education, Legal Framework for Sustainable Construction, Provision of incentives, e.g. Tax grants, low interest loans and Position Financial Industry to deal with Sustainable Construction. The recommendations suggested was the setting up of a green building council to oversee the transition of infrastructure in Ghana from conventional to sustainable built infrastructures. Also, there was a need for a financial institution that will cater to the financing of the construction industry in Ghana to avoid competition with other sectors of the economy from accessing capital for sustainable construction projects.

Source: KNUST
Promotion of export marketing of small scale industry products in Ghana

The promotion of small scale industries has, since the middle 1980s, become a major policy of the government of Ghana in its efforts to diversify the Ghanaian economy. The choice of the small scale industrial strategy lies in the role it plays in the generations of employment, income, and foreign exchange, among others. However, the growth and development of the small scale industries require that they are able to compete effectively with large and medium scale firms as well as imported goods. To achieve this means that the small scale industries need to develop efficient and effective domestic and export marketing strategies. i.xport promotion policies have, therefore, been formulated and promotion institutions set up to implement these policies. The aim of the study was to: (i) identify the major policy instruments for export marketing; (ii) critically examine the implementation strategies for export marketing policies at both industry and exporter level; and (iii) make recommendations for the formulation of more coherent and effective export marketing policies and strategies for small scale industry products. The theoretical and analytical framework adopted for the study was dynamic comparative advantage and market structure-conduct-performance models. it has been concluded that, government has clearly defined policy goals, objectives and plan of action to achieve them. Though general macro-economic policy reforms have all provided an enabling environment, the desired success has not been realised due to lack of commitment to the implementation of the export promotion policies. Other problems that retard export promotion policies include: • unbalanced policy in favour of economic incentives as against marketing incentives; • inadequate information about the incentives packages; + lack of qualified and experienced international marketing personnel to provide practical guidance to producers and exporters; • inconsistency and lack of continuity in policy implementation, • low capital; and • inability to produce large volumes to meet demand schedules. At the firm and exporters level, the entrepreneurs lack managerial and technical skill to properly structure and conduct their businesses effectively and efficiently. The entrepreneurs are not engaged in direct export marketing, and thus have lost control over the marketing mix variables. They could, therefore, not penetrate the global market competitively. In order to address these problems and improve the performance of the sector, the following recommendations have been made relating to: (i) upgrading of managerial competence of producers and exporters and institutional capacity building; (ii) market research development institutions; (iii) development of channel alternatives; (iv) formation of co-operative groups; (v) development of Joint Establishment Export Promotions (JEEP); (vi) comprehensive export policy formulation; and (vii) provision of credit facilities

Source: KNUST
Promoting vital government economic policies and programmes through textile surface pattern designs

Surface pattern designs have the potential of communicating with the viewer so far as the motifs and the patterns in the design are well understood by the viewer. This can be achieved through the use of design concepts that make meaning to people at a glance. It is for this reason that this project seeks to promote government economic policies and programmes in the Ghanaian society and even beyond through the use of concept-oriented printed textile designs. Questionnaires were administered to the public so as to assess the level of awareness of Ghanaians on the government policies and programmes. The responses obtained enabled the researcher to produce the textile designs to meet the requirements of the study. Motifs have been developed based on the selected policies and programmes in this study. The various procedures for generating printed textile designs based on the selected government policies and programmes using the Adobe Photoshop software have also been presented. Additionally, the various designs produced have been appreciated by the researcher in this report and subsequently printed on fabrics so as to demonstrate the usefulness of the designs. The printed textile designs produced when printed on fabrics and worn would go a long way to promote the government economic policies and programmes as well as the textile printing industry in general.

Source: KNUST
Promoting sustainable procurement within the road sector in Ghana: A case study of Department of Urban Road offices in Accra

In most developing countries, there are no clear cut policies for Sustainable Procurement in the road sector (Ross, 2013). The Road Sector in Ghana is not an exception. The aim of the study seeks to help promote Sustainable Procurement (SP) within the road sector in Ghana with focus on Greater Accra. A questionnaire and interviews were the survey instruments employed for the study. A total of thirty-one (31) construction professionals who work in the Department of Urban Road (DUR) offices were used for the questionnaire survey while a total of six (6) heads, including one (1) contracts manager and one (1) head of quantity survey section at the regional office, of the DUR offices visited were interviewed. Using a convenience approach and purposive sampling technique, the target respondents and interviewees were civil engineers, materials engineers, geodetic engineers and quantity surveyors by profession. Using SPSS v16 and Microsoft excel, the data collected from the survey were grouped together and were analyzed, and the following observations and conclusions were drawn. From the findings it was realized that no policy document on sustainable procurement was in place that mandated Urban Road Offices to carryout sustainable procurement. Also, Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP) was most commonly perceived as economically responsible procurement and socially responsible procurement with little consideration given to environmentally friendly procurement. Political/ Cultural interference and Lack of Environmental Awareness among Society ranked as top barriers and challenges whiles Capacity building, Education and Training of Stakeholders and Collaboration with contractors in a way to achieve Sustainability ranked as top strategies to the promotion of Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP) in the Roads Sector of Ghana.

Source: KNUST
Promotion of non-traditional exports under the structural adjustment programme in Ghana

The research is concerned with the effect of current government policies under the ERP on NTE5. Studies on the performance of NTEs before the EU have shown that NTE policies before the ERP did not achieve any significant result. This has brought forth the question of whether the current NTE policies have the impetus of improving NTE performance. The imperical research therefore examines the current NTE policies under the UP to find out the effectiveness of using the policies to influence the performance of NTEs as a basis of export development and diversification. A study conducted to examine the effect of NTE policy change sampled 156 firms (both exporters and non-exporters) from a population of 300 firms selected from three metropoles (Accra/Tema, Kumasi and Shama-Ahanta). Thirteen major NTEs used for the analysis were selected from three product-group (Agricultural, Processed and Semi-Processed and Handicraft). The selection of these products was based the following criteria. a) overall contribution of the product to export earnings of the non-traditional sector; b) the degree of value added and the linkage with other sectors; and c) the availability of ready external market. Data for the analysis were dollected from both secondary and primary sources. Prominent secondary data sources are; Ghana Export Promotion Council annual reports? Quarterly digest of statistics (various issues) and Economic survey. Primary data were collected with the help of structured questionnaires. The analysis of the study revealed that exchange rate and trade policies were the most dominant variables which influenced the performance of NTE under the REP period. Also revealed were some challenges facing NTE sector. Among them were export finance which many exporters considered as a major challenge, and bureaucratic export procedure which makes exporting burdensome Based on these findings, the study recommends the following as a. solution to the development of nontraditional exports. a) the need to maintain appropriate macro-economic, exchange rate and trade policies are imperative for the sustained development of NTEs. b) the need to improve the capital base of Export Finance Company to be more resourceful to expand credit facilities to many exporters. c) the need to establish export processing centre to reduce the bureaucratic export procedure. The study concludes that even though there were some challenges which faced NTE sector, NTEs performance have responded positively to the policies under the ERP as compared with NTE policies before the ERP. In terms of relative prices, ERP/SAP policies especially the exchange rate depreciations have improved export earnings relative to those of domestic goods.

Source: KNUST
The promotion of Ghanaian textile prints on contemporary Ghanaian market

The historical overview of the Ghanaian textile printing industry over the period of their establishment shows that the factories have never enjoyed consumers’ full patronage of their products, The products from T.T.L. and G.T.M.C. for example, have often been regarded as inferior, A period between 1967-69 when T.T.L. cloth was selling at one cedi (¢1.00) per metre, the cloths came to be as ‘cedi tam’ or cedi cloth, a slogan which signified inferior quality. Since then, Ghanaian consumers have generally expressed negative attitudes towards the locally produced printed cloths in favour of the Western imported ones. As far as the promotion of the Ghanaian printed cloths is concerned, this had adverse socio-economic consequences on individual consumers, traders or distributors the producers and the nation as a whole. This thesis therefore has grown out of the researchers desire to foster an increased awareness of the need for Ghanaians to patronize local products, especially the printed cloths. The researcher used both Descriptive and Analytical Survey methods in his field research. Eighty-four (84) consumers, our (4) textile printing factories and twenty five (25) distributors including the big trading firms and market women were involved in the study. Other auxiliary bodies involved were officials from the Ghana Standards Board rind Ministry of Trade and Tourism, Accra. The research instruments used were questionnaires, interviews and personal observations. Besides other minor factors, the research was based upon five major variables which the researcher considered as the main contributory factors to the problem. These were: (1) The quality of Ghanaian printed cloths in terms of dye fastness, durability, designs and colour used; (2) Consumers income in re1aton to prices of the prints; (3) Consumers’ general psychological impression and lack of taste for the local prints; (4) Lack of education and (5) Lack of effective distribution and sale promotional activities The data obtained from the field were critically analysed and interpreted A review of the research findings revealed that the quality of the Ghanaian printed cloths, especially the fading a. dyes; consumers’ general psychological impression and lack of taste for the local printed cloths are the two most important factors related to consumer’s discrimination against the locally produced printed cloths in favour of the Western imported ones. Based on the results of the analysis, the researcher has come out with some recommendations which should guide all persons who are related to the production, distribution and uses of Ghanaian printed cloths in their anxiety and search for an effective means of promoting the Ghanaian printed cloths. It is hoped that the findings and recommendations made on them will help find a lasting solution to the problems retarding the promotion of Ghanaian printed cloths on the contemporary Ghanaian market.

Source: KNUST
Promotion of rural service centres for local level development: a case study of the Ejisu-Juaben District

Ghana’s decentralisation policy is geared towards spreading development to all parts of the district. This calls for strategies which enhance and promote spatial development. The attainment of a even development throughout the district borders on the allocation of resources. It has been realised that resource allocation in the district is more towards the developed areas and this is widening the inequality gap in the district. It is in the light of this that the study was undertaken to identify the deprived areas and adopt strategies to bridge the gap between these deprived areas and the developed areas. An analysis of the spatial pattern of the district was carried out and it was realised that services are concentrated in the urban areas with the majority of settlements in the district having little or no services. Additionally, an accessibility analysis was done and this also revealed that only a small portion of the district is accessible to services. The poor road networking and surface conditions have served as a disincentive for investments of any sort to be sited in the remote hinterlands. This situation has deepened the inequality that exists between developed and undeveloped areas in the district. In order to ascertain the welfare status of the people, their income levels and expenditure patterns as well as occupations engaged in were analysed. Income distribution showed that the urban areas earned twice as much as what pertained in the rural areas. Also, the urban dweller is able to save up to about 28 per cent of incomes whilst savings are only 18 per cent in the rural areas. Again, tendencies of unemployment were highest in the rural areas. The analysis showed that there exists disparities in the distribution of central places and that parts of the district are deprived of essential services which are necessary for local level development. To make the deprived areas more accessible and to become integrated into the whole district spatial system, a number of rural service centres which would attract some basic rural services are proposed. These rural service centres are located such that people can easily have access to services. In this case, people would be able to participate more in decision making and development activities.

Source: KNUST
Promotion of the kente industry in Ejisu-Juaben District

In a bid to promote non-traditional tradeables and exports by the Government of Ghana the kente industry is one of the Small Scale Industries, which has received a lot of attention. After 15 years the lot of the kente industry has not changed much. The growth of the industry can be described as very slow. Weavers are abandoning the trade to go in for different trade. Socio-cultural norms still make it very difficult for women weavers to ply the trade. With Ejisu Juaben as the study area, the objective of this study was therefore; to identify the problems leading to the slow growth of the industry; to explore the prospects of the Kente industry as an endogenous potential to local development; and to make recommendations for the promotion of the Kente industry in Ejisu-Juaben. The study revealed that most of the weavers have very low education and lack entrepreneurial skills. Other constraints impeding the growth of the industry include lack of capital, sky rocketing prices of yarns, inability of weavers to take advantage of the strategic location of the district and the infrastructure within. It is still male dominated and controlled by exploitive and powerful middlemen. Nevertheless the industry has a lot of potentials for growth and also can contribute towards the development of the district. This is due to the fact that apart from the yarn, which comes from outside the district, all the accessories for weaving come from the district. The district can boast of indigenous people with weaving skills and infrastructure needed to develop the industry. Furthermore, the geographical location of the industry makes it accessible to other parts of the region as well as the country. The demand for the product overseas also makes it a foreign exchange earner. The industry has the potential to create a lot of jobs for the youthful population and generate a lot of revenue to the district assembly should the activities of the industry be streamlined. As a way of promoting the industry the study proposes intervention strategies at three levels. At the macro level the study calls for strategies which will check the sky rocketing of prices of raw materials and policies which are friendly to SSIs development and sustainability. Promotion strategies at the meso level targets decentralised institutions and what they have to do to promote SSIs in the areas of credit provision, training, and promotion of women participation and formation of trade associations. At the micro level capacity building of entrepreneurs to combine factors of production effectively is recommended.

Source: KNUST
The promotion of small-scale industries at the micro-level: a case study of the Enowid strategy in the Ahanta West District

The provision of assistance to small scale industries is generally acknowledged to be vital to industrial development because of certain externalities which limit their viability. There are a number of institutions specifically set up by government to provide such assistance. These agencies, however, have been unable to provide adequate services to industries at the micro level partly because of constraints on their activities at the district level. The objectives of the paper were to review and assess the activities of a scheme set up under the Programme of Action to Mitigate the Social Costs of Adjustment (PANSCAD), known as ENOWID (Enhancing Opportunities for Women in Development), which is currently providing assistance to women industrialists in Ahanta West District. The scheme had been in operation for one and a half years at the time of the study. ENOWID’s aims are to provide technical and financial support to increase rural women’s production, increase their management skills, and the marketing of their products, and also to encourage them to link increased income with improve family welfare. The study came up with certain findings. In brief, these were that: the district was very poorly provided with industrial promotion services; credit acquisition through the project by the industrialists boosted their profits; there was a less marked success with the marketing, managerial training aspects of the project. There were also indicators that family welfare was improved. Recommendations were made for projects to give assistance in areas of industrial potential in the district. Locations were suggested, for the targeting of such assistance. The recommendations stressed the need for adequate project preparation and consultation by district planners and technical staff. A flow chart of suggested planning method was provided as well as an organogram of a proposed linkage system for relevant institutions and groups involved in the project.

Source: KNUST