ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
The coverage of Africa in Ghanaian newspapers: The dominant Western voice in the continent’s coverage

A growing literature has emerged that is contesting the validity of Africa’s negative Western media representation as a myth and empirically non-existent. This article examines how four national newspapers in Ghana reported the continent. About 13,228 corpus belonging to these top four national newspapers, over a period of 2years, were quantitatively examined for sources utilised. Based on a 2-week constructed sampling technique, 180 articles reporting Africa were further analysed for the subjects and tone of the coverage, and the dominant themes of representation. The ethnographic content analysis revealed that the coverage of the continent in these newspapers is dominated by themes of war, crime, killings, crises, terrorism and omission of progress. The African story was mostly narrated through the subject of politics and with a predominantly negative tone. I argue that the continent’s negative proxy self-coverage confirms the evasive spread of Afro-pessimism considering that Western global news organisations accounted for over 80 per cent of the reportage as sources

Source: UCC
COVID-19 and frontline health workers in West Africa: a scoping review

Introduction The novel Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) has become a severe global health threat since its emergence. Overcoming the virus is partly dependent on the holistic wellbeing of frontline health workers. Implications of COVID-19 on frontline health workers in West Africa could be substantial given the limited resources and logistics. This scoping review maps available literature on the impact of COVID-19 on frontline health workers in West Africa. Materials and methods Literature on the impact of COVID-19 on frontline health workers in West Africa were searched in six databases namely Cochrane Library, PubMed, EMBASE, Google Scholar, Africa Journals Online (AJOL) and CINAHL. Further search was done across websites of the ministries of health of West African countries and notable organisations. We conducted a narrative synthesis of the findings taking cognisance of the overarching purpose of the study and the research question. Results Of the 67 studies identified, 19 were included in the final synthesis. Three main themes emerged and these are impact of COVID-19 on frontline health workers, drivers of susceptibility to COVID-19 and government/donor support. A greater number of the studies originated from Nigeria. Each study reported at least one impact of COVID-19 on frontline health workers in West Africa. The impacts included death, fear, unwillingness to attend to COVID-19 patients and stigmatisation. Some health workers were not adhering to the safety protocols coupled with periodic shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) and thereby had an increased susceptibility. Being the first scoping review on the impact of COVID-19 on frontline health workers in West Africa, the study has illustrated the urgent need for West African governments to enact laws/rules that would compel all frontline health workers to adhere to all the COVID-19 protocols at the workplace. To end intermittent shortage or issue of inadequate PPEs, governments ought to liaise with local industries by empowering them, providing financial support and creating a conducive atmosphere for them to produce cost effective PPEs using available local resources.

Source: UCC
Covid-19 Pandemic And Financial Markets’ Performance: The Role Of Development Status, Financial Globalisation, And Trade Openness

This study examines the effect of development status in the relationship between COVID-19 and performance of stock markets using the Bayesian Structural Time Series and Pooled OLS estimation approaches. The study further assesses the moderating role of financial globalisation in the volatility transmission between stock and forex markets during COVID-19 period, using Panel FMOLS and Panel DOLS estimation techniques. Finally, the study investigates the moderating role of trade openness in the relationship between COVID-19 and exchange rate in Ghana, applying the FMOLS and CCR estimation techniques. The findings revealed that, stock markets in developing economies were the heaviest impacted, followed by those in emerging economies, with the ones in developed economies being the least impacted. Further, the results show a bidirectional volatility transmission between forex and stock markets, with financial globalisation playing a moderating role in this relationship. The findings further, provide evidence of trade openness serving as a conduit in reversing the adverse influence of COVID-19 on the value of the Ghana cedi. To mitigate the impact of future crisis, risk management frameworks must be improved. To harness the stabilising potential of financial globalisation in volatility transmission, asset diversification, information flow and market efficiency should be promoted in African financial markets. To ease the pressure on Ghana’s exchange rate, export-oriented industries must be targeted and supported to generate the needed foreign exchange.

Source: UCC
COVID-19 Transmission Dynamics and Response: Opinions and Perspectives from Africa

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) since its declaration as a pandemic by world health organization (WHO) has spread across the various continent with little known about the most effective public health response for containing and mitigating the transmission of the epidemic. It is important to state that some authors have published on the lessons learned from transmission and management of COVID-19 infection but only a few considered it from the Africa perspective. Despite the late arrival of the pandemic in Africa and the notion that the virus may not thrive because of the high temperature in the continent; today the narrative has changed with the number of infected patients increasing daily. Herein, the authors have shared their perspectives and opinions on the dynamics and response to COVID-19 from Africa context to create more awareness and approach in mitigating the spread of the virus should the continent becomes the epicenter of COVID-19.

Source: UCC
Cowpea resistance to scab fungus in Uganda: Can resistance be achieved using landraces as source of genes?

Cowpea (Viga unguiculata L. Walp), the third most important legume food crop in Uganda is faced with a lot of challenges, paramount among them being scab disease. Mean yield is less than 400 kg/ha though the crop has a yield potential of 3,000 kg/ha. The cowpea scab disease caused by the fungus Sphaceloma sp., is seed-borne and is capable of causing yield losses of up to 100% as the disease affects all the above ground parts of the cowpea plant. There is currently a resurgence of the disease in the country leading to significant yield losses in farmers’ fields, yet none of the five improved cowpea cultivars recently released in the country is resistant to the disease. The use of resistant cultivars in disease management is the most practical approach, easily adopted and more environmentally friendly. A better understanding of the distribution of the disease in the country, identification of sources of resistance; knowing how variable the pathogen is, and, understanding the gene action conditioning resistance to the disease, yield and yield related traits in the crop plant are fundamental to developing resistant cowpea cultivars to manage the disease. This paper reviews information on these important facets to explore the possibility of developing cowpea cultivars with resistance to the scab fungus in Uganda. The literature suggests that breeding for resistance to the cowpea scab disease and high yield can be achieved using Ugandan landraces as source of genes

Source: UCC
CpG‑oligodeoxynucleotides suppress the proliferation of A549 lung adenocarcinoma cells via toll‑like receptor 9 signaling and upregulation of Runt‑related transcription factor 3 expression

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of CpG-oligodeoxynucelotides (CpG-ODN) on the proliferation of the A549 human lung adenocarcinoma cell line and the expression of Runt-related transcription factor 3 (Runx3) and investigate the association between the toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) signaling pathway and Runx3 expression during A549 cell proliferation. Different concentrations of CpG-ODN were used in this study to stimulate A549 cells and the expression of Runx3 at the mRNA or protein level was detected by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction or western blot analysis. Moreover, Runx3 siRNA was synthesized and transiently transfected into the A549 cells and the MTT assay was used to detect the effects of CpG-ODN on transfected cell growth. Our data demonstrated that CpG-ODN significantly inhibited the proliferation of A549 cells. The expression of Runx3 in the mRNA and protein level was increased in A549 cells stimulated by CpG-ODN. The CpG-ODN-stimulated cell proliferation was significantly inhibited in Runx3 siRNA-transfected A549 cells. In conclusion, CpG-ODN may bind to TLR9, inhibit the proliferation of A549 cells and upregulate the expression of Runx3

Source: UCC
Craft industry, livelihoods and community wellbeing in the Akuapim South District

The decline in the production and sale of handicrafts and wood products has substantially caused decline in the values and volumes that meets its global demand. The endogenous theory assumes Small and Medium scale Enterprises to be a driver of internal development. These Small and Medium-scale enterprises are capable of serving as a pillar to the private sector in Ghana of which the craft industry is a sector. One variable of social development is the wellbeing of the people. Thus, the researcher was motivated to explore the craft industry, livelihood and community wellbeing in Akuapim South District. The emphasis was on the production level of the craft industry. The study used interpretive paradigm with interview guides and observations which helped to know the livelihoods (means and strategies) of the people in the district who are craft workers. The study pointed that some crafters only engaged in craft business as their sole source of income while others supported it with alternative sources. The study also found out that their income gains were dependent on the customer base. It was recommended that the Akuapim South District Assembly and the Association Heads should re-organise their strategies to improve their selling opportunities on international market.

Source: UCC
The "Craft of Bruising" and the Life of Azumah "Professor of the Ring" Nelson - A Social History of Ghanaian Boxing (Volume Two)

This thesis explores how boxing emerged In Ghana from both indigenous and foreign (British) inventiveness, how it has shaped aspects of Ghana's popular culture, and also examines boxing's social meaning and impact in the colonial and postcolonial milieux. Furthermore, this work expands the popular conception of boxing as a "culture of the underprivileged" to embrace its vital significance as a stimulus to social mobility. On that trajectory. this work rethinks another socio-cultural meaning of boxing as a "sado-masochist" manifestation, which is counterproductive to "civilized" human culture,' by intellectualising it as a positive shaper of personal and national identities. Additionally, this study discusses how boxing was resourcefully used by the Ga-Mashie ethnie of Ghana, for cultural and economic empowerment, the roles that its boxers. especially Azumah Nelson, have played in shaping the history and foml of Ghana's "popular culture," and it uses Bourdieu's concept of Habitus to investigate the proverbial gravitation of the elhnie to boxing. Moreover, the thesis interrogates the "ghetto" beginnings and legendary career of ex-champion and the International Boxing Hall of Fame inductee, Azumah Nelson, and highlights how "ghetto" boxers can intemationalise Ghana, and transcend social obscurity to affluence and fame. The work nourishes the intellectual discourse on identity creation and social empowerment through the popular culture of sports.

Source: UCC
The “Craft of Bruising” and the Life of Azumah “Professor of the Ring” Nelson – A Social History of Ghanaian Boxing (Volume One)

This thesis explores how boxing emerged in Ghana from both indigenous and foreign (British) inventiveness, how it has shaped aspects of Ghana’s popular culture, and also examines boxing’s social meaning and impact in the colonial and postcolonial milieux. “culture of the underprivileged” to embrace its vital significance as a stimulus to social mobility. On that trajectory, this work rethinks another socio-cultural meaning of boxing as a “sado-masochist” manifestation, which is counterproductive to “civilized” human culture,1 by intellectualising it as a positive shaper of personal and national identities. Additionally, this study discusses how boxing was resourcefully used by the Ga-Mashie ethnie of Ghana, for cultural and economic empowerment, the roles that its boxers, especially Azumah Nelson, have played in shaping the history and form of Ghana’s “popular culture.” and it uses Bourdieu’s concept of Habitus to investigate the proverbial gravitation of the ethnie to boxing. Moreover, the thesis interrogates the “ghetto” beginnings and legendary career of ex-champion and the International Boxing Hall of Fame inductee, Azumah Nelson, and highlights how “ghetto” boxers can internationalise Ghana, and transcend social obscurity to affluence and fame. The work empowerment through the popular culture of sports.

Source: UCC
Creative Art Therapy as a Stress Management Technique for Senior Staff of University of Cape Coast, Ghana

This research explored how creative art therapy could be used as an effective stress management technique. To help attain utmost results from the study, the researcher employed the quasi experimental design of investigation to aid in implementing the treatment – creative art therapy. The study comprised both control and experimental participants. The research participants consisted of 20 senior staff in the University of Cape Coast (UCC), Ghana who were selected through a multistage sampling procedure. The respondents’ levels of stress were obtained with the aid of a Perceived Stress Scale. The experimental group was taken through a creative art therapy treatment while the control group received no treatment. The study identified that the overall stress level of the senior staff of UCC operate at a high level of stress. Stress of senior staff was generally as a result of constellation of factors related to their finances, family and their personal lives. The application of creative art over eight sessions on the experimental group provided participants with some amount of stress relief as they engaged in the creation of different craft works. It is worth noting that with much motivation and freedom of expression, the experimental participants were able to explore the creativity within them which facilitated their accomplishments of tasks and relieved them from stress. It is recommended that counsellors should organise programmes aimed at creating awareness of stress and strategies by which staff can cope with stress. Counsellors are also urged to use creative art therapy for stress reduction among clients. Management of universities should collaborate with counselling units to establish therapeutic sections within the institution which would offer art therapy settings for stress relief services to workers at their own convenience.

Source: UCC
Creative Arts industries in Ghana: an Exploration of the Characteristics of the Bonwire Kente Weaving Village

The kente weaving subsector in Ghana as part of the creative industries is a potential economic booster. It can create avenue for wealth generation and job creation. In spite of these potentials, scholarship on the subsector specifically the physical and economic condition of businesses has received little attention. Most of the existing scholarship centre on historical narratives of the subsector, textile weaving in the educational sector, tools and techniques in textile weaving and the effects of the socio-political climate on the weavers and the market. Though these narratives are important contributions to scholarship on the textile industry in Ghana, much need to be done especially in assessing the basic geographical and physical standing of this sub-sector which act as the crust of the survival of the sub-sector. Using interviews and observation and the Bonwire Kente weaving village as the unit of analysis, this research sought to explore the conditions of the physical and economic features of the weaving village in Ghana. The study revealed that features such as physical structure, infrastructure network, technology/equipment and raw materials are challenged. The challenges were caused by some factors such as lack of funding, poor infrastructural network, unavailability and costly nature of raw material and technological lag. These challenges, according to participants, could be improved when various actors (weavers, government, educational institutions, community) create enabling conditions in the areas of funding, education, technological advancement and provision of raw materials locally.

Source: UCC
Creative processes, structures and performance of shrine music of the Northern Ewes: the case of Awudome people of Ghana

This thesis researched into the Creative Processes, Structures and Performance of Shrine Music of the Northern Ewes. I focused on three shrines at the Awudome Traditional Area in Ghana as a case study. As its methodological approaches, I combined focus groups discussion and one-on-one interviews. The overriding objectives of this study are to move the history of Awudome from the realm of oral tradition into a written document; and to investigate the creative processes in composition and performance of traditional music, using musicians at the shrine. The research, however, revealed four creative processes at the shrine in song composition: Hada`ugbledede/hakpakpa (conceptualization or song meditation), hakpakpa (pealing of the song or composing) hadada kp4kp4 or hanu4 kp4kp4 (meeting the mother or leader of songs/poet/cantor), and finally haxexe (catching the song). This finding is contrary to some views that the traditional musician only improvises and without following any creative procedures.

Source: UCC
Credit Financing And Performance Of Small And Medium-Sized Enterprises In Juaboso District

Given the importance and contribution of small and medium enterprises to the economy, multiple empirical studies show that the majority of small business fail to expand, with some closing their doors within the first few years of existence. According to the literature, different parts of credit financing may have varying effects on businesses depending on the nature of the company, necessitating the need to examine the effect of credit financing on specific enterprises. The study looked at factors affecting small and medium sized enterprises, ease of small and medium sized enterprises credit financing, credit financing as a percent of firm assets and the relationship between credit financing and small and medium sized enterprises performance. The study discussed the credit rationing theory, information asymmetry theory, accelerator theory, and the concept of credit financing and small business performance evaluation as part of the theoretical and conceptual analysis. The thesis adopted the descriptive design discussed in a quantitative analysis. In all, 100 small and medium sized enterprises in the Juaboso District were included in the study and the research employed a questionnaire to elicit the required data for the study. The study employed frequency tables, diagrams and regression analysis to examine the level of credit financing between small and medium sized enterprises in Juaboso District. The study found that credit financing had positive effect on performance of small and medium sized enterprises in Juaboso District with a coefficient of correlation of 0.6029. The research recommended that financial lending institutions to establish less stringent collateral requirements to increase small enterprises access to credit finance.

Source: UCC
Credit Financing And Small Business Performance Within The Agona East District, Ghana

This study delved into the effect of credit financing options on the performance of small businesses in the Agona East District. The study discussed financial constraint theory, the concept of credit financing and firm performance as part of the theoretical and conceptual reviews. This dissertation utilised the positivism research paradigm and the quantitative research approach. The study was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics to examine the relationship between credit financing options and firm performance. In all, 130 managers of small businesses in the Agona East District were included in the study, and the research employed a questionnaire to elicit the required data for the study. The findings demonstrated that the small businesses in the Agona East District of Ghana have varying levels of access to credit financing options, including loans, lines of credit, credit cards, and mortgages. This finding indicates that creditworthiness, as reflected in factors like strong credit scores, collateral availability, and personal credit history, significantly influences small businesses' ability to access credit. Lastly, the findings revealed a positive relationship between credit financing options and firm performance. Based on the results, it was recommended that, managers of small businesses within Agona East District must improve financial literacy programs. In addition financial institutions and credit bureaus should collaborate to establish and maintain robust credit reporting systems. Lastly, small business associations, chambers of commerce, and financial institutions should collaborate to provide education and training on credit management.

Source: UCC
Credit management practices of Suma Rural Bank Limited

Credit is the largest asset and the main source of income to Rural Banks in Ghana, notwithstanding the associated risk. Like any other business, it is risky and expensive to manage. So it is with managing credit portfolios. The study sought to evaluate how credit is managed in Suma Rural Bank Ltd. It also examined whether the performance of credit or loans was in line with the benchmark set by the Bank of Ghana. Additionally, it examined the measures used in ensuring effective and sound credit practices, the extent to which the banks educate and supervise the customers and problems encountered in recovering the loans granted by the bank to its customers as well as the customers’ satisfaction with services provided by the bank. Using the survey design, structured questionnaire and purposive sampling strategy, primary data was collected from a sample of 150 respondents. The study showed that the bank had higher default rate, hence, operating far below the Bank of Ghana benchmark recovery rate. It was recommended that the bank should adopt innovations to improve on the quality customer service delivery such providing in-service training for staff, speed up the duration in disbursing loans, and increase customer education and advisory services, strengthening the monitoring of the ongoing work of debtors among many others.

Source: UCC