ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Epilepsy: knowledge, attitude and practice in literate urban population, Accra, Ghana

A cross sectional survey was conducted among Government workers and the general public in Accra, Ghana. A total of 380 persons were interviewed. Almost everybody could describe accurately, an epileptic person. However, 172 (45.3%) out of the 380 respondents did not know the cause of epilepsy, and 37.6% did not know how it could be treated. Out of the 358 responses to the cause of epilepsy, 114 (31.8%) said it was inherited disease, 100 (27.9%) said it was due to witchcraft/juju or spiritual. With respect to treatment, 150 out of 333 responses mentioned sending the individual to the medical doctor, 95 (28.5%) said the use of herbs/visits to fetish priest, 59 (17.7%) suggested prayers, 20 (6.0%) said to do nothing. For prevention, 77 (29.1%) out of 319 responses indicated prayers, 49 (15.45%) cautioned marrying into epileptic family, and 13 (4.1%) responses indicated not to touch patient fitting. Those who answered "don't know" regarding knowledge about epilepsy were mostly the young, the lower educational status and the single respondents. However, the most important characteristic of the respondent that was associated with the appropriateness of the responses was the educational status. Although a lot of misconceptions about epilepsy existed in the study population, e.g. epilepsy can be spread by contact and that epileptics must be isolated or avoided, several respondents would share a room, eat or employ persons with epilepsy. The study has shown that the traditional beliefs and attitudes about epilepsy are still held firmly by the adult working population and that the educational level of the respondent was positively related to the appropriateness of the responses. It is therefore suggested that additional efforts must be made to increase the knowledge of the general population through the use of social marketing strategies in order to improve the management of persons with epilepsy.

Source: UG
Epistatic interactions in genetic regulation of t-PA and PAI-1 levels in a Ghanaian population

The proteins, tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA) and plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1), act in concert to balance thrombus formation and degradation, thereby modulating the development of arterial thrombosis and excessive bleeding. PAI-1 is upregulated by the renin-angiotensin system (RAS), specifically by angiotensin II, the product of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) cleavage of angiotensin I, which is produced by the cleavage of angiotensinogen (AGT) by renin (REN). ACE indirectly stimulates the release of t-PA which, in turn, activates the corresponding fibrinolytic system. Single polymorphisms in these pathways have been shown to significantly impact plasma levels of t-PA and PAI-1 differently in Ghanaian males and females. Here we explore the involvement of epistatic interactions between the same polymorphisms in central genes of the RAS and fibrinolytic systems on plasma t-PA and PAI-1 levels within the same population (n = 992). Statistical modeling of pairwise interactions was done using two-way ANOVA between polymorphisms in the ETNK2, RENIN, ACE, PAI-1, t-PA, and AGT genes. The most significant interactions that associated with t-PA levels were between the ETNK2 A6135G and the REN T9435C polymorphisms in females (p = 0.006) and the REN T9435C and the TPA I/D polymorphisms (p = 0.005) in males. The most significant interactions for PAI-1 levels were with REN T9435C and the TPA I/D polymorphisms (p = 0.001) in females, and the association of REN G6567T with the TPA I/D polymorphisms (p = 0.032) in males. Our results provide evidence for multiple genetic effects that may not be detected using single SNP analysis. Because t-PA and PAI-1 have been implicated in cardiovascular disease these results support the idea that the genetic architecture of cardiovascular disease is complex. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the relationship between interacting polymorphisms of pathway specific genes that predict t-PA and PAI-1 levels.

Source: UG
Epistemological Questions in the Study of the Pan-African Movement

Faced with pressures from below and the wave of new energies from the African peoples, the Executive Council of the African Union (AU) in May 2013 declared an ambitious agenda for a people centered Union to achieve the agenda of full unity by 2063. This goal of the unification and the emancipation of African peoples in all parts of the world had been articulated by the Pan African Movement from the outset. Social movements such as the Garvey movement had given coherence to the concept of the full unification and thinkers such as Cheikh Anta Diop, Julius Nyerere, Amilcar Cabral, Wangaari Mathai and Kwame Nkrumah had refined the conceptions of Pan Africanism. Emancipation, unification and dignity had been key aspects of the Pan African movement from its inception. Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana had been a crucial link between the Pan African movements of the Fifth Pan African Congress up to the formation of the OAU in 1963. Kwame Nkrumah had maintained that the independence of Ghana would be “incomplete without the independence of all of Africa.” It was this spirit that informed the OAU liberation Committee and this Committee was the driving force behind the OAU up to the formal end of apartheid in 1994.The presentation will examine five approaches to the study of the movement: Positivism, Marxism, Feminism, Constructivism and the emancipatory approach. The renewed confidence of Africans is emerging in the midst of an economic depression in Europe and at a moment when Africans are stating clearly that there must be new values for African unity, for healing ourselves and the world (Maathai 2010). The urgency for planning across borders has been reinforced by the ravages of Global Warming and the multiple disasters that face the ordinary producers. These pressures from the structural conditions of exploitation are reinforced by the changes in the international financial architecture. Temporarily, the ordinary people have created their own cross border monetary transactions with the traders, especially women, establishing innovative methods for freedom of movement. Even at the moment of planning for full unification there was recognition that the full tasks of the Pan African Project were incomplete. There are still outstanding colonial outposts where African peoples live in Western Sahara, Comoros and Diego Garcia, Guadeloupe Martinique, Puerto Rico, Cayenne (among others). It was this recognition that ensured the clarity that the tasks of Pan African liberation are incomplete. In the effort to embrace a new thinking about the relationship between people’s unity and economic transformation, new conceptions of Pan Africanism are being refined within the conception of Ubuntu. Intellectuals are caught between the growing neo-liberal and state centered approaches to Pan Africanism and the voices from below demanding full emancipation.

Source: UG
An Epistle to the Educated Youngman in Akim Abuakwa (Gold Coast)

I desire to address you and all the educated persons in Akim Abuakwa on a few topics of importance to the national well being of Akim Abuakwa. This communication is rendered necessary and opportune in view of the phenomenal success of the visit to England of Nana – Otumfo Sir Ofori Atta, our esteemed ruler

Source: UG
Epithermal instrumental neutron activation analysis for the determination of gold and arsenic in Ghanaian gold tailings using conventional and anti-coincidence counting

Epithermal instrumental neutron activation analysis (EINAA) together with both conventional and anti-coincidence counting techniques were used to analyze six different gold tailing samples from Ghana for Au and As. The method involves the use of the epi-cadmium site of the Dalhousie University Slowpoke-2 reactor facility for the irradiation of the samples. After irradiation, the samples were counted directly on the detectors. The identification and quantification of the elements were done using 411 keV photopeak of 198Au and both 559 keV and 657 keV photopeaks of 76As. The precision and accuracy of the method were evaluated-Values for Au in the samples ranged from 2.48 ppm and 6.76 ppm and for As between 1,550 ppm and 3,460 ppm. The values obtained using the two counting systems were in good agreement while the anti-coincidence counting system gave values of higher precision and accuracy. The detection limit for Au were 20 and 10 ppb for the conventional and anti-coincidence spectrometric systems, respectively, and 50 ppb for As in both cases. Details of the method and results are presented.

Source: UG
Epstein Barr Virus Associated Lymphomas and Epithelia Cancers in Humans

Epstein Barr virus (EBV) is a cosmopolitan oncogenic virus, infecting about 90% of the world’s population and it is associated to tumors originating from both epithelia and hematopoietic cells. Transmission of the virus is mainly through oral secretions; however, transmission through organ transplantation and blood transfusion has been reported. In order to evade immune recognition, EBV establishes latent infection in B lymphocytes where it expresses limited sets of proteins called EBV transcription programs (ETPs), including six nuclear antigens (EBNAs), three latent membrane proteins (LMP), and untranslated RNA called EBV encoded RNA (EBER), shown to efficiently transform B cells into lymphoblastic cells. These programs undergo different patterns of expression which determine the occurrence of distinct types of latency in the pathogenesis of a particular tumor. Hematopoietic cell derived tumors include but not limited to Burkitt’s lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma, post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorders, and natural killer (NK)/T cell lymphoma. EBV undergoes lytic infection in epithelia cells for amplification of the viral particle for transmission where it expresses lytic stage genes. However, for reasons yet to be unveiled, EBV switches from the expression of lytic stage genes to the expression of ETPs in epithelia cells. The expression of the ETPs lead to the transformation of epithelia cells into permanently proliferating cells, resulting in epithelia cell derived malignancies such as nasopharyngeal cancer, gastric cancer, and breast cancer. In this review, we have summarized the current updates on EBV associated epithelial and B cell-derived malignancies, and the role of EBV latency gene products in the pathogenesis of the cancers, and have suggested areas for future studies when considering therapeutic measures

Source: UG
Epstein-Barr virus but not cytomegalovirus is associated with reduced vaccine antibody responses in Gambian infants

The Epidemiology Department contributes to the mission of the institute through basic and applied epidemiological research on, but not limited to, malaria and other diseases of public health importance. It is also home to the Social Science Unit of the Institute, including the Health Support Centre for HIV/AIDS and other communicable and noncommunicable health problems.

Source: UG
The Equatorial Nile Project and Its Effects in the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan Being the Report of the Jonglei Investigation Team.

The conservation of water, the regulation of rivers for irrigation purposes, and the production of hydro-electric power are matters of growing importance and interest in the world today. Increases in populations and the demand for higher standards of living mean that natural resources must be used for the benefit of mankind with maximum efficiency. These observations are particularly true of the Nile Valley. Both the Blue Nile and the White Nile pass through a variety of country, and both are a source of livelihood. For the inhabitants. They make possible irrigation schemes in Egypt and the Northern Sudan; the natural fluctuations of the White Nile playa vital part in the present economy of the peoples of the Southern Sudan; in East Africa the waters of the Nile are a source of hydro-electric power for industrial development and may also be required for irrigation in the future. Both rivers cross national • frontiers and are of international concern. It would be idle to deny that these matters have the widest political implications, but we wish to state at once that the political aspects are no concern of ours. The opinions expressed are our own and not necessarily those of the Sudan Government to whom this report is submitted, and we are concerned only to present the facts as they appear to us as the result of our investigation. It is the earnest hope of the Jonglei Investigation Team that its contributions to knowledge of that part of the White Nile system with which it is concerned may be of assistance in finding the best form of river control for the benefit of all inhabitants of the Nile Valley

Source: UG
The Equatorial Nile Project: Its Effects and the Remedies- Volume II

As early as 1904 a map was printed, in a report by Sir William Garstin on the basin of the Upper Nile, on which was shown a line from Bor to the White Nile representing a canal to by-pass the Sudd region of the Bahr el Jebel. Garstin's report laid the foundations of a hydrological service which covers the Nile and all its important tributaries today, and whose records in some instances are continuous for nearly 50 years. By the 1930's sufficient knowledge of the hydrology of the swamps had been gained for three alternative projects to be proposed whose purpose was to prevent some of the enormous losses of water which occur there. These three projects are known as the Veveno-Pibor Scheme, the Jonglei Canal Scheme, and the Jebel Banking Scheme. In the first scheme water was to be carried from the Bahr el Jebel to the Veveno in a cut, and thence to the White Nile via the Pibor and the Sobat; in the second there was to be a by-pass canal starting at Jonglei; and in the third losses were to be prevented by building banks alongside the river. The three schemes were examined in detail and in 1938 the Minister of Public Works in Egypt directed that the Jonglei Canal Scheme was to be accepted in its general form as the officially approved scheme.

Source: UG
Equitable Access and Inclusiveness in Basic Education: Roadblocks to Sustainable Development Goals

For more than half a century, the recognition of education by the international community as a social transformative tool and a fundamental human right has found strong affirmations in conventions, statutes and resolutions. The inception of the Sustainable Development Goals (2015–2030), as a sequel to the Millennium Development Goals (2000–2015) for instance acknowledges education as an indispensable conduit for people to realize their capabilities whiles completing primary school cycle. However, while the international community is yet to realise the potential of education as a catalyst for development, greater inequalities in access to education in the face of heightening social, economic, political and cultural challenges exist for different social classes in different parts of developing countries, precisely Ghana. The paper sought to investigate the challenges to basic education access and inclusiveness in Ghana. The study was conducted in two (2) selected districts each in some six（6）purposefully sampled regions against the backdrop of the 2015 Ghana PovertyMapping Report. Relying on field gathered data, the study data analysis revealed that access to education in the study areas are chiefly poverty induced. It also found out that, the lack of a sustainable education policy and political will, coupled with incessant political interferences in education by governments over the years has been deleterious to education access in Ghana. The study concluded that merit-based poverty considerations, and the introduction of social policy interventions is crucial to increasing access to education. It is therefore pertinent for Government, Non-Governmental Organisations and Civil Society Organisations, Corporate bodies and other stakeholders alike to reignite their commitment to ensuring the extensive extension of assistance to the needy, whiles pushing for the implementation of pro-poor policies aimed at increasing access and equity/inclusiveness relative to basic education in Ghana.

Source: UG
Equitable access to health insurance for socially excluded children. The case of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) in Ghana

To help reduce child mortality and reach universal health coverage, Ghana extended free membership of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) to children (under-18s) in 2008. However, despite the introduction of premium waivers, a substantial proportion of children remain uninsured. Thus far, few studies have explored why enrolment of children in NHIS may remain low, despite the absence of significant financial barriers to membership. In this paper we therefore look beyond economic explanations of access to health insurance to explore additional wider determinants of enrolment in the NHIS. In particular, we investigate whether social exclusion, as measured through a sociocultural, political and economic lens, can explain poor enrolment rates of children. Data were collected from a cross-sectional survey of 4050 representative households conducted in Ghana in 2012. Household indices were created to measure sociocultural, political and economic exclusion, and logistic regressions were conducted to study determinants of enrolment at the individual and household levels. Our results indicate that socioculturally, economically and politically excluded children are less likely to enrol in the NHIS. Furthermore, households excluded in all dimensions were more likely to be non-enrolled or partiallyenrolled (i.e. not all children enrolled within the household) than fully-enrolled. These results suggest that equity in access for socially excluded children has not yet been achieved. Efforts should be taken to improve coverage by removing the remaining small, annually renewable registration fee, implementing and publicising the new clause that de-links premium waivers from parental membership, establishing additional scheme administrative offices in remote areas, holding regular registration sessions in schools and conducting outreach sessions and providing registration support to female guardians of children. Ensuring equitable access to NHIS will contribute substantially to improving child health and reducing child mortality in Ghana.

Source: UG
Equitable access to health insurance for socially excluded children? The case of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) in Ghana

The Clinical Pathology Department conducts research that contributes to intervention strategies and safeguards of public health in Ghana. In view of this the Department carries out research into plant medicine development, drug interactions and regulation, bio-monitoring and prevention of poisoning from environmental toxicants (e.g. mycotoxins specifically aflatoxins and toxic heavy metals). The Department also provides specialized laboratory services in support of public health programmes.

Source: UG
Equitable global allocation of monkeypox vaccines

With the world grappling with continued spread of monkeypox internationally, vaccines play a crucial role in mitigating the harms from infection and preventing spread. However, countries with the greatest need – particularly historically endemic countries with the highest monkeypox case-fatality rates – are not able to acquire scarce vaccines. This is unjust, and requires rectification through equitable allocation of vaccines globally. We propose applying the Fair Priority Model for such allocation, which emphasizes three key principles: 1) preventing harm; 2) prioritizing the disadvantaged; and 3) treating people with equal moral concern. Post exposure prophylaxis (PEPV) has the most potential to mitigate harm, and so ensuring countries have sufficient supply for PEPV should be the first priority. And historically endemic countries, which face disadvantages that compound potential harms from monkeypox, should be the first recipients of such vaccines. Once sufficient supply is allocated for countries to apply PEPV, global allocation could move on to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), again prioritizing historically endemic countries first before distribution to the rest of the global community, based on projected number of cases and vulnerability to harm.

Source: UG
Equity and expertise in the UN Food Systems Summit

The UN Food Systems Summit is bold but controversial, with important implications for global food systems and public health. ► Alongside claims of corporate capture, many have noted insufficient attention paid to human rights and to rebalancing power in the food system. ► These issues speak to wider issues of participation and equity in the summit itself. Narrow definitions of equity only consider income inequities in outcomes and coverage. Broader definitions consider why such inequities persevere and are interlinked via process es that can be historical and intergenerational. ► The summit’s science group is slanted in disciplinary expertise: it lacks sufficient expertise in equity, health, and noncommunicable diseases, or representatives with expertise in Indigenous knowledge. ► It is not too late to rectify this in the summit structures, as we approach the September summit meeting.

Source: UG
Equity aspects of the National Health Insurance Scheme in Ghana: Who is enrolling, who is not and why?

To improve equity in the provision of health care and provide risk protection to poor households, low-income countries are increasingly moving to social health insurance. Using data from a household survey of 3301 households conducted in 2009 this study aims to evaluate equity in enrollment in the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) in Ghana and assess determinants of demand across socio-economic groups. Specifically by looking at how different predisposing (age, gender, education, occupation, family size, marital status, peer pressure and health beliefs etc) enabling (income, place of residence) need (health status) and social factors (perceptions) affect household decision to enrol and remain in the NHIS. Equity in enrollment is assessed by comparing enrollment between consumption quintiles. Determinants of enrolling in and dropping out from NHIS are assessed using a multinomial logit model after using PCA to evaluate respondent's perceptions relating to schemes, providers and community health 'beliefs and attitudes'. We find evidence of inequity in enrollment in the NHIS and significant differences in determinants of current and previous enrollment across socio-economic quintiles. Both current and previous enrollment is influenced by predisposing, enabling and social factors. There are, however, clear differences in determinants of enrollment between the rich and the poor. Policy makers need to recognize that extending enrollment will require recognition of all these complex factors in their design of interventions to stimulate enrollment. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd.

Source: UG