ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Evaluating the financial performance of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology's commercial units (1998-2002): the case of the Printing Press and Photocopy Unit

The focus of the research was to evaluate the financial performances of KNUST commercial units for the period 1998 to 2002 with particular reference to the Printing Press and Photocopy Unit. The research methodology of the study was the quantitative research design approach in the field survey and data analysis. Financial ratios were widely resorted in the data analysis stage. The major finding of the study was that the commercial units of KNUST were generally not profitable as their financial performance variables staggered below the acceptable levels. The Photocopy Unit, however, showed improved performance over the Printing Press. Managerial and operational bottlenecks partly accounted for the low levels of viability of the units. The way forward to improving the financial performance of the units could be the floatation shares and the widening their market coverage areas.

Source: KNUST
Evaluating the financial performance of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology’s Commercial units (1998-2002): the case of the printing press and photocopy unit

The focus of the research was to evaluate the financial performances of KNUST commercial units for the period 1998 to 2002 with particular reference to the Printing Press and Photocopy Unit. The research methodology of the study was the quantitative research design approach in the field survey and data analysis. Financial ratios were widely reported in the data analysis stage. The major finding of the study was that the commercial units of KNUST were generally not profitable as their financial performance variables staggered below the acceptable levels. The Photocopy Unit, however, showed improved performance over the Printing Press. Managerial and operational bottlenecks partly accounted for the low levels of viability of the units. The way forward to improving the financial performance of the units could be the floatation shares and the widening their market coverage areas.

Source: KNUST
Evaluating the growth performance of small ruminants and the quality of stored fodder and manure in Atebubu and Amantin of the Brong Ahafo region

The study was aimed at evaluating the liveweight performance of sheep and goats and the quality of stored fodder and manure at Atebubu and Amantin in the Brong-Ahafo Region of Ghana. Six farmers (three males and three females) were selected from each Community with each farmer providing six animals (three sheep and three goats). Feed resources used in the study areas contained 3.2-17.3% crude protein, 82-97.2% organic matter and 2.8-18% ash contents. The dietary treatments were Treatment 1 (basal diets of maize stover, cassava and yam peels), Treatment 2 (supplementation of treatment 1 with cowpea residues) and Treatment 3 (supplementation of treatment 1 with groundnut residues) in a completely randomized block design. Nutrient composition of the feed materials used in Atebubu ranged from 89.43-91.2 % (OM), 84.22-88.50 % (DM), 6.41-11.58 % (CP), 8.8-9.57 % (Ash) with that of Amantin having 83.5-89.40 % (DM), 85.62-88.97% (OM), 5.32-10.27% (CP) and 11.04-12.38% (Ash). Total feed intake (TFI) ranged from 519.55-659.72g/day and 331.84-420.17 g/day for sheep and goats respectively, with their corresponding weight gain of 14.96-25.74g/day and 8.52-18.89g/day. Feed conversion ratio (FCR) ranged from 22.08-64.24 and 18.38-53.45 for sheep and goats respectively. Samples of groundnut and cowpea residues in open and closed storage systems, taken at 1, 4, 8, 12, 14, 20, 24 and 28 weeks, showed an insignificant decline in crude protein content with storage time. Manure produced by sheep weighed 319.17-423.33g/day and contained 20.74-29.01% C, 1.87-2.32% N, 0.77-3.00 K, 9.52-26.50% Ash with a pH of 0.44-0.77 and a C:N ratio of 10.98-15.53 while that of goats weighed 178.67-216.17g/day with 19.58-30.61% C ,1.56-2.21% N, 0.82-8.33% K, 10.75-19.80% Ash with a pH of 0.37-1.47 and a C:N ratio of 9.49-19.92. The results from this trial suggest that locally available feed resources can significantly contribute to meeting the nutrient requirements of ruminants.

Source: KNUST
Evaluating the Health and Environmental Consequences of Sulphur-Related Diesel Emissions

Sulphur content is one of the most important fuel parameters affecting exhaust emissions from vehicles. Sulphur is a direct pollutant that can combine with other atmospheric elements to form compounds that contribute to global warming; hence minimising its quantity in fuels is essential. Standards have been set globally to regulate the sulphur content of diesel fuels. This research undertakes a comparative analysis of the sulphur content in fuel samples, randomly collected from five different fuel station brands. The sulphur content of diesel was analysed with sulphur analyser Hitachi LAB X-5000 following the ASTM D 4294-16 test method which is deemed simple. In the Kumasi Metropolis, the mean sulphur concentration in diesel was considerably elevated (ranging from 60 – 258 parts per million (ppm)) in comparison to the global standard of 50 ppm. From the analysis, the sulphur levels were in the order: Brand A< Brand C < Brand D < Brand E < Brand B. An assessment of the impact of sulphur emissions (from cradle to gate) on health, the ecosystem, and climate change was done using SimaPro software (v9.4.0.2). The results revealed the detrimental effects of the emissions, particularly when using fuels sourced from Brand B. Therefore, it is essential to enforce measures that ensure the imported and consumed diesel in the metropolis aligns with the stipulated regulations. This will mitigate potential health risks and environmental damage that may ensue from escalated sulphur emissions. Random checks on diesel quality at retail outlets are recommended to ensure compliance with set regulations.

Source: KNUST
Evaluating the impact of poor team training on construction project delay (A case study on a construction of an ultra-modern recreational center at Gyakiti)

Construction projects have been characterized by delays. A major cause of this is poorly trained team members. Hence, this research is aimed at evaluating the effect of poor team training of construction workers on construction projects. The objectives of this research were to identify the significant benefits of proper team training in construction project delay, to identify the significant negative effects of poor team training on construction workers and to recommend training programs that would enhance human resource in construction projects. Literature review was conducted to discuss previous studies on some benefits of proper team training in construction project delay and some effects of poor team training on construction workers. Questionnaires were developed from the literature review and were used to collect data. The data collected was analyzed statistically; the means of the data were calculated to generate the significant benefits of proper team training as well as the significant effects of poor team training. The results from the analysis showed that, the significant benefits of proper team training in construction project delay are: addressed weakness; increased productivity; and adherence to quality standards. Also the significant effects of poor team training on construction workers are: unhappy employees; low productive value; and unsafe work environments. Further, some training programs such as technology-based learning, simulators, on-the-job training, coaching or mentoring, group discussions, and role-playing and toolbox meetings were then recommended to enhance team performance in construction projects

Source: KNUST
Evaluating the Impact of Iscala Enterprise Resource Planning System on Industry in Ghana: Case Study, the Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Kumasi-Ghana

The world has experienced a new advancement in technology and as such companies are also expected to make good use of this advancement. The introduction of new information technology tools has really benefited the companies. One of such new systems that have been introduced is the ERP system. ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) systems are a large set of integrated software’s that provide support for different organizational activities such as manufacturing, marketing, logistics, finance, accounting human resource etc. The Coca Cola Bottling Company Limited Kumasi-Ghana is also expecting to benefit from this new technology and has decided to implement 1SCALA ERP system at its organizations plant. After the implementation there would be a need to find out whether the ERP has been successfully implemented especially here in Ghana and also to find out whether there has been any impact at all after this systems implementation. Research must also be carried out to check if there was an impact on the companies’ processes and if the implementation was a success what are some of the critical success factors that were considered during the implementation here in Ghana.

Source: KNUST
Evaluating The Impact of Non-Governmental Organizations On Basic Education in Rural Areas in Ghana; the case of Afigya Kwabre District

In spite of these challenges, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) have significant input in the communities they serve. The most common NGOs are into Education, Health, Agriculture, ICT, sustainability programs. The need for Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in Ghana is very important and needs to be encouraged. This research assesses the impact of these NGOs on education retention, enrolment, attendance and their input in the establishment of infrastructure. The study covered communities in the Afigya-Kwabre District of Ashanti Region. The research employed both primary and secondary data. SPSS was used in the analysis of data gathered. This gave a clear understanding of the contribution of NGOs in education in the rural areas. The outcome of this study was that, scholarships were provided for pupils in four of the schools selected as confirmed by the headmasters of the individual schools, the District Educational directorate and the focus group discussions carried out with the Parent Teacher Association and/or School Management Committees. The scholarship package included assurance for payment of school fees for the child for every term if the child continues to SHS, payment of ICT fees and some amount of money for daily up keep. In a nut shell, it was evident from the data collected that, NGOs have positive impact on education in the rural areas through the provision of scholarships, provision of school uniforms, provision of school supplies and infrastructure. It was therefore recommended after the study that NGOs should engage schools management in implementation and monitoring of programs to improve education.

Source: KNUST
Evaluating the Implementation of Intermittent Preventive Treatment (IPTP) Programme Using Sulphadoxine Pyrimethamine for the Control of Malaria in Pregnancy in the Kwabre District of Ghana

Malaria is one of the major public health problems worldwide especially in Sub-Saharan Africa. Its effect is severest amongst pregnant women and children. The introduction of a weekly antenatal chloroquine treatment for pregnant women and children, however, failed. In its place, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended Intermittent Preventive Treatment in pregnancy (IPTp) using Sulphadoxine-Pyrimethamine (SP), which was introduced in Ghana in 2005. This study sought to evaluate the implementation of the IPTp programme and its effects on pregnant women in the Kwabre district to inform policy. The study is a descriptive cross-sectional study that was conducted from July to September 2007 in the Kwabre district of the Ashanti Region of Ghana. Three hundred and eight (308) pregnant women and nursing mothers who had recently delivered were sampled and interviewed using close-ended questionnaires. Twenty-five midwives and twenty-four heads of health facilities were purposively selected and interviewed using interview guides. Records were reviewed at both the facility and district levels. Key findings were that more than 90 percent of midwives on the IPTP programme had been adequately trained, though 78.8 percent had not had training in almost two years. Knowledge of the effects of malaria in pregnancy was high amongst midwives, nursing mothers and pregnant women, whilst record keeping in most of the health facilities was quite poor, because only 62.5 percent employed ledger/tally cards to keep records on the drugs and half of the facilities (50%) had run out of stock of SP for over a week in the last three months prior to the study. Majority of the nursing mothers received SP during pregnancy (65.4 percent), but most of them received it only once (40.2 percent). Adverse reactions of SP such as dizziness, nausea, itching, and palpitations were experienced by 27.3 percent of respondents but were not reported at the health facilities in the district. The proportion of pregnant women who had malaria decreased from 5.4 percent in 2004 to 4.3 percent in 2006 and so did the incidence of low birth weight rate. ANC attendance was also very high (98.7%) in the District. The implementation of the IPTp programme in the Kwabre district has been successful in terms of the awareness and knowledge of both the midwives and pregnant women of the effects of malaria in pregnancy. However, some major challenges exist which constrain the effective running of the programme. These include improper records keeping, adverse drug effect monitoring, regular shortages of SP, low second and third dose of IPTp coverage, and irregular training of midwives. These challenges pose a threat to the IPT programme and must be addressed. The study recommends that implementation lapses in training, drug supply, pharmacovigilance, record keeping and communication must be should be addressed to achieve targets readily.

Source: KNUST
EVALUATING THE PERFORMANCE OF MUTUAL FUNDS: A CASE STUDY OF ANIDASO MUTUAL FUND

Many investments companies are operating in the Ghanaian financial market, thus performance evaluation study is very essential and useful for prospective investors to make informed decision regarding their choice and selection of mutual fund. This study seeks to evaluate the performance of the Anidaso mutual fund of the New Generation Investment Services in the Kumasi metropolis. Specific objectives were to examine the funds administration method used by NGIS, to carry out a detailed assessment of the Anidaso mutual fund using trend analysis, evaluate the performance of the fund relative to GSE index and that of the 91days T-bill, and evaluate the performance of the fund relative to Data Bank‟s E-pack. Data for the study was collected to cover the period 2009 to 2013 on all the indicators, a trend analysis was done to assess the fund‟s performance whiles a composite measure comprising of Jensen‟s alpha, Treynor‟s index and Sharpe‟s index were also used to assess the fund‟s return on the risk aspect of the study. The researcher gathered from the study that the fund managers of Anidaso mutual fund use an administration method known as the advanced portfolio accounting system. It was also find out that comparatively, the Anidaso mutual fund posted considerable higher returns than that of the GSE index for the years considered, thus four out of the five years. However, the Anidaso mutual fund did posted slightly lower returns as against the 91 days t- bill rate and that of E-pack‟s return, thus showing higher returns in only two out of the five years considered.

Source: KNUST
Evaluating the impact of the National Youth Employment programme on job creation in Ghana

Unemployment seems to have been a major cause of concern in most part of our world today. It is observed that Ghana as a country continues to battle with this age old challenge of creating jobs for many of her youth. The Ghanaian government has developed several policies and initiatives to address this challenge over the years with the introduction of the National Youth Employment Programme (NYEP) as one such initiative. Despite all these, there still remains very high youth unemployment rate in the country (25.6% rate recorded by the 2000 population and housing census).This research therefore seeks to evaluate how much the NYEP has impacted on creating jobs for the youth amidst high recorded rates of youth unemployment in the country. The study used both qualitative and quantitative methods to collect data from 130 respondents who were (4) management staff and (126) beneficiaries of the NYEP units from two selected District/Municipal Assemblies in Ghana. The study revealed an increasing rate of youth unemployment in Ghana despite the introduction of the NYEP. The findings further showed a low impact level of the programme as a result of numerous challenges such as low level of youth participation, inadequate funding, inability to sustain the programme and its beneficiaries, little government support, absence of a legal framework among others. From these, it was recommended that government works better on planning, implementing and evaluating more initiatives that helps to address youth unemployment. Above all, the impact of such initiatives needs to be driven towards youth entrepreneurship that aids sustainable livelihood and economic development.

Source: KNUST
Evaluating the performance of pension funds A case study of Social Security and National Insurance Trust (Ssnit)

The Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) has a primary responsibility to collect contributions to pay pensions and other benefits as they fall due. In fulfilling this responsibility, the funds collected are invested to generate additional income to add to the contributions of members. However, in recent times concerns have been raised on the scheme‟s low investment returns. This research sought to evaluate the performance of SSNIT investments returns from 2004 to 2013. The Evaluative research design was adopted in this research and the results showed that the returns on SSNIT investment were generally below the general market returns (Ghana Stock Exchange) on absolute basis. The effect of inflation on the returns of the fund was significant with the fund recording negative real return in some years. It was also found that inadequate investment expertise at SSNIT may have contributed to the low returns recorded by the organization. However, further measure of performance on risk-adjusted basis using the three widely used indexes (Jensen alpha, Sharpe ratio and Treynor index) revealed that, SSNIT portfolio manager outperformed the market. Again, SSNIT portfolio was found to be less risky than the market. It was also found that Investment Monitoring Capacity, Industry and regulatory challenges, Currency risks, Silence of the pension law on foreign investments, Political interference and others are some of the challenges encountered in the investment of SSNIT funds.

Source: KNUST
EVALUATING THE PERFORMANCE OF NSOATRE COOPERATIVE CREDIT UNION BETWEEN 2010 AND 2014

This study was conducted to evaluate the performance of the Nsoatre cooperative credit union. The objective of the study was to examine the credit union‘s operations; assess the loan performance of the credit union; examine the sources of deposits of the union and how the union raises funds and the utilization of their funds mobilized. The research was purely an exploratory; for the information and operations of credit unions are not widely circulated coupled with little literature especially in print media in the District. The research design adopted for the study includes face- to- face structured interviews and administration of questionnaires. Purposive sampling technique was adopted for the study simply because the 9 sample selected who were also respondents were considered to have in-depth knowledge of the problem studied. Notable among the findings for the study include low disbursement rate. The operations of the union were not the best hence they need more training and support to enhance their effectiveness and competiveness. The credit union was found to be performing well in mobilizing savings and raising funds for investment, yet the cooperative was beset with high loan loss and weak credit administration though it significantly improved in the 2014 financial year. In conclusion, the study revealed that between 2010 and 2014, the union performed well in mobilizing deposits; the cooperative union invested the funds prudently to ensure maximization of returns and they improved tremendously in rescuing their loan loss rate. The loan recovery rate was good although the loan selection criteria were weak. The disbursement rate was also low because of the union‘s unwillingness to take much risk. However, this could be an encumbrance to the union in fulfilling its mandate of providing financial support for their members. The union needed to improve their systems and structures to help make the organization effective in the discharge of its mandate.

Source: KNUST
Evaluating the public procurement act 2003(act 663) as amended as a tool for fighting corruption in public entities in Ghana

Corruption in public procurement has become a canker that every government seeks to eradicate. The Public Procurement Act, 2003, (Act 663) was enacted and further amended to strengthen the weak procurement systems that bedevilled the economy. With the passage of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017, (Act 959) Ghana seeks to bring corruption down to its knees. The study examined the effectiveness of the Public Procurement Act in combating corruption in public procurement procedures amongst State Owned Enterprises. The objectives of the study were to determine significant corrupt practices within Ghanaian public procurement entities when procuring, to analyse critical causes of corruption in public procurement entities in Ghana and to assess the negative effects of corruption on public procurement in Ghana. A case study research strategy was used for this study with a structured questionnaire to collect data from the procurement units of some selected State Owned Enterprises using the purposive approach. The significant corrupt practices found are procurement corruption during bid evaluation and limiting the number of competitors. The study revealed political influence; desire for wealth and greed of contractors as the critical causes of corruption in State Owned Enterprises with loss of confidence in public officials; increase in public expenditure; diversion of government revenue, negatively affects the economic growth of the country, breeds impunity and dilution of public integrity; impaired quality service delivery; increased cost of doing business; and unnecessarily limits access to public services as important negative ramifications of corruption in public procurement in State Owned Enterprises. In spite of the rich anti-corruption provisions in the Act corruption still exists in public procurement. It is therefore recommended that Act 663 as amended is religiously adhered to and activities of procurement units regularly monitored and sanctioned

Source: KNUST