ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Introgression of Striga (Striga gesnerioides Willd) resistance into cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp) varieties.

The parasitic weed, Striga gesnerioides (Willd) Vatke is one of the most important constraints to cowpea production in the dry savanna (Derived Savanna, Southern Guinea Savanna and Northern Guinea Savanna) of Northern Ghana. Yield losses due to S. gesnerioides range from 83 to 100%. No single method however, seems to be fully adequate in the control of this parasite. Host plant resistance, appears to have merit in effectively and economically controlling the parasite in that it is affordable to farmers. The objective of this study was to introgress Striga resistance into existing farmer-preferred cowpea varieties. Two resistant genotypes IT99K-573-1-1 and GH3684 were crossed to two susceptible varieties “Hewale” and “Asomdwee” respectively. The chi-square test was used to test the goodness-of-fit of the observed ratios to the expected genetic ratio in F2 segregating populations. The results of the cross of genetic of inheritance demonstrated 3R:1S ratio indicating single dominant gene action (monogenic inheritance). The result of the inheritance study indicated that the environment had great influence on a number of agronomic traits. The broad sense heritability for susceptible and resistant were high (63% and 78% respectively). Narrow sense heritability were low for some of the traits which is an indication that environmental factors (Striga) influenced cowpea production in this study. Three simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers SSR-1, C42-2B and 61RM2 associated with Striga resistance were used to screen 93 F2 progenies. The study showed that the three markers had discriminating power to distinguish between the resistant and susceptible genotypes and with presence of bands in resistant genotypes. The allele frequency for marker SSR-1 was 65% and 61RM2 was 73%, suggesting that these markers are highly repeatable within the population. Yield loss due to Striga infestation was estimated to be (78.22 to 87.17%). Other yield component including pods per plant, 100 seed weight, fodder yield, pod length as well as the number of seeds per pod of the susceptible genotypes were affected. There was significant correlation between percentage yield reduction and percentage reduction in various yield components indicating that Striga infestation was responsible for the overall yield reduction. At present very limited sources of Striga resistant varieties are available, therefore there is the need to develop new Striga resistant cowpea varieties that meet end-user preference. Promising lines will be screened with more Striga resistant markers to determine their level of genetic status.

Source: KNUST
Inventory control problem of a single warehouse and a multi-retailer distrbution system (a case of Chocho Industry)

In many distribution systems important cost reductions and/or service improvements may be achieved by adopting efficient inventory replenishment strategies for all items and facilities concerned. Such strategies often need to exploit economies of scale that arise e.g. when shipping full (or close to full) rail loads or truck loads of goods. The latter can often only be achieved by combining deliveries to distinct locations into efficient routes. These efficiency improvements and service enhancements clearly require an integrated approach towards various logistical planning functions; in particular the areas of inventory control and transportation planning need to be closely coordinated; for example, shipping in smaller quantities and with higher frequency generally leads to reductions in inventory investments but requires additional transportation costs. In this thesis we considered distribution systems with a single depot and many geographically dispersed retailers each of which faces a specific demand process for a given item. All stock enters the system through the depot from where it is distributed to (some of) the retailers by a fleet of trucks, combining deliveries into efficient routes. Our objective is to determine long-term integrated replenishment strategies (i.e., inventory rules and routing patterns) enabling all retailers to meet their demands while minimizing long-run average system-wide transportation and inventory costs. We applied Route First Cluster Second approach to determine feasible replenishment strategies (i.e., inventory rules and routing patterns) minimizing (infinite horizon) long-run average transportation and inventory costs. A numerical study exhibits the performance of these heuristics and reduced the distribution cost of the company drastically

Source: KNUST
Inventory Control System for Determining Optimal Quantity; Case Study: Agricare Limited, Tanoso-Kumasi

This thesis addresses the problem of inventory management of an Agricare Limited, Tanoso-Kumasi. The objectives of this study includes: (a) to model poultry feed inventory as a Retroactive Holding Cost problem, (b) to determine optimal order quantity, optimal total inventory cost and cycle time of poultry feed inventory using Retroactive solution algorithm. We use real data (processing times, random yield factors, etc) from a poultry feed manufacturing company, (Agricare Limited) providing simultaneously the model validation and the evaluation of the relative performance of the company. The approach used to analyze this problem was simulation based optimization. The holding cost per unit of the item per unit time is assumed to be an increasing step function of the time spent in storage. Time-dependent holding cost increase step function model is considered, namely: Retroactive holding cost increase. Procedures were used for determining the optimal order quantity and the optimal cycle time for retroactive holding cost.

Source: KNUST
Inventory Control Modeling for Water Level Scheduling: the Case Study of Akosombo Dam, Ghana

The thesis is a construction of quantitative models to serve as some of control measures or policies for managers of Akosombo dam to determine optimal energy generation and water quantity release scheduling from the dam all times. The data used for the thesis was collected from the Transmission Systems Department, Volta River Authority, Ghana. The data were daily time series of Akosombo dam water levels from 1998-2007 and daily data of energy generated from Akosombo dam from 2000 to 2007. First order and second order autoregressive models were formulated using least-square fitting method purposely for forecasting future daily dam water levels even though series is random. Furthermore, inventory analysis was performed on the data collected to produce optimal energy demand and optimal release quantity of water from the dam in a sustainable way and control options for the management of the dam. Finally, queue theoretic concept was used to model the occurrence of queue of water in the Akosombo dam. Probability of queue of water (traffic intensity) and probability of no queue (stockout probability) throughout a year at 68%and 95% service levels were determined.

Source: KNUST
Inventory management and organizational performance: the roles of technology and knowledge sharing

The aim of the study was to address gaps in the literature on inventory management and organizational performance by developing a research model that introduces technology utilization and knowledge sharing as crucial intervening variables. It sought to determine the impact of these variables on the relationship between inventory management and organizational performance. To achieve this, a quantitative approach was adopted, and a survey was conducted among 109 power producing and distribution organisations in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. The collected data was analyzed using descriptive and structural modeling techniques. The findings of the study indicate a strong positive relationship between inventory management and organizational performance. Additionally, knowledge sharing was found to positively mediate the relationship between inventory management and organizational performance. However, the research did not find significant evidence for the positive moderating impact of technology utilization on the relationship between inventory management and organizational performance. Based on these findings, the study recommends the implementation of strategic initiatives such as Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) techniques, which can contribute to improved performance by reducing overall stocking costs. Furthermore, it emphasizes the importance of information sharing approaches along the supply chain, as they can enhance the level and utilization of expertise within the chain for the benefit of the organisation

Source: KNUST
Inventory management in the Public Hospitals: the case of Ankaase Government Hospital, Afrancho Government Hospital and Mowire Family Care Hospital

The concern of all public hospitals has been how to effectively ensure adequate supply of goods and equipment to ensure optimum supply and demand. In most public hospitals as the problem has been, it‘s either an overstocking or under stocking leading to shortage or surplus hence incurring avoidable cost. This study aimed at finding out how effective inventory management was in selected public hospitals. The study adopted the case study design with the research approach being mixed method (Qualitative& Quantitative). The study employed both probability and non-probability random sampling Techniques to sample 65 health workers in three hospitals in the Afigya Kwabre District. Data were analyzed descriptively, whiles the qualitative responses were analyzed thematically. The study identified that an appreciable number of hospital staff understand the concept of inventory management (74.1%). The commonest inventory technique used was the ABC method with majority 49.2(32/65) of the staff admitting the use of requisition forms during the demand for goods from the stores. Coding system continue to be used in itemizing goods at the stores department, however this was done manually at the various units of the hospitals. The challenges that impede upon the effective hospital inventory management include inaccurate level of inventory management, delay of request poor record-keeping and over-supply. The effectiveness of inventory in hospitals is crucial for effective health care delivery. This research has brought to the fore the gaps in the inventory management in the selected public hospitals. A concerted effort need to be put in place to recruit skilled purchasing and supply persons with ample training to manage inventory. More to it is the call for a network and systematize inventory processes to track all inventory in the hospitals.

Source: KNUST
Inventory Management in the Ghana Health Service and its Role in Healthcare Delivery: (A Case Study of Health Facilities in Ho Municipality)

Healthcare systems are organizations established to meet the health needs of target population. Inventory represents the largest single investment in assets for most organizations. While inventory is concerned with monetary issues, health facilities are in the business of saving lives. Although inventory has an important role to play, the emphasis should be on using it in a way that makes a difference to the quality of patient care. Despite efforts being made by the Ministry of Health, Ghana Health Service and its partners to provide the country with health commodities (medicines and medical logistics) to meet the requirements of clients (people who need the healthcare), these commodities are often wrongly managed or inadequate. These therefore leaves the clients with no alternatives than to fall on the traditional medicines or travel over long distances in search of health care or seek spiritual assistance from churches, shrines, witchdoctors and so on. The main objective of this research is to assess the role that inventory management plays in primary healthcare delivery system. To achieve the objective, health facilities in the Ho municipality were chosen for the study. The researcher adopted the stratified sampling method to choose Seventy-Eight respondents. The respondents were divided into three (3) strata in order to ensure that each was appropriately represented in the survey sample. Stratum 1, comprised the inventory managers; Stratum 2, comprised the healthcare providers; and Stratum 3, comprised the healthcare receivers.It was established that majority of inventory managers and healthcare providers leave their jobs or facilities and travel long distances for the health commodities from either the Central Medical Stores (CMS) or the Regional Medical Stores. In most cases, these inventory managers happened to be the only staff at the department or unit, thus depriving the facility of their valuable service. The researcher recommends that health commodities must be delivered directly to the health facilities from the Central Medical Stores (CMS) and the Regional Medical Store (RMS).

Source: KNUST
Inventory management and organisational performance: (a case study of accra brewery limited)

Inventory Management is a fundamental organization concern for most organisation’ huge organisation, medium-sized organisation and small organisation. Functioning inventory organization in supply chains is one of the basic components for achievement. The study examined the inventory management and organisational performance in Ghana with Accra Brewery Limited (ABL) as a case study. The researcher adopted a case study approach with a structured questionnaire with a sample size of One hundred thirty-five (135) individuals of Accra Brewery Limited's junior and senior staff were selected using a purposive sampling technique and an SPSS was used for the analysis. Based on the findings of the study, the study indicates that ABC classification has a negative and insignificant effect on operational performance. The study also indicates that vendor inventory management has a positive but insignificant effect on operational performance and finally, the coefficient statistically indicates that there is a positive and significant relationship between just-in-time and vendor managed inventory and there is a positive and significant relationship between just-in-time and operational performance. The study there recommends that management should utilize the ABC analysis as a stock categorization method. The ideal way to devote resources and effort to stock practices will be for organizations to use ABC analysis as stock categorization, also management should utilize fixed order quantities to know the quantity of stock to order at any given time finally, recommends that management of organizations should recognize that there is the need for them to increase operational efficiency so that they will be able to reduce operational cost and increase productivity so that they can withstand global competition.

Source: KNUST
Investigate the extent to which corporate governance and agency problems exist in the Sunyani regional hospital

The significance of good corporate governance practice in the running of corporate organizations cannot be undervalued. The growing effect of good practice of corporate governance across the world has been critically connected to the current corporate scandals and frauds. These scandals and frauds fundamentally lead to the letdown of executives of organizations to efficiently implement the regulatory frameworks and legal pertaining to organizational governance. The case study tries to probe the extent to which corporate governance and agency problems exist in the Regional Hospital, Sunyani. The researcher used systematic sampling technique to select a total sample size of 210 (Core management-7 and junior staff-203) from the total population of 830.The researcher used both secondary and primary data as sources of data for the study; both the interview and structured questionnaire were used to collect primary data. SPSS version 21.0 was used to analyze the data and the findings were presented using frequencies, tables and charts. The study found that over 80% of the staff members of Regional Hospital, Sunyani have appreciable knowledge on corporate governance and agency problems with regards to definition and concepts. It was found that the Regional Hospital, Sunyani practice good governance as confirmed by majority of the staff. Chi-square test was performed to find out the association between good corporate governance and organizational performance and the results showed that there was strong significant association between good corporate governance and organizational performance in terms of growth and decline. The case study recommends that the authorities of the organization should do due diligence in identifying and selecting candidates who have good reputation, well-motivated and enthusiastic to the health profession when recruiting.

Source: KNUST
Inventory of water points and sanitation facilities in the Techiman District

Water is a depletable natural resource which is absolutely essential to all forms of Ii t It poor management and uneven distribution has left many inhabitants of the Techiman District without adequate quality water bar both domestic and agricultural activities. This study, which aims at identifying sources of’ water bar domestic and agricultural activities water points management practices, the sanitation situation and elated health impacts, was conducted between November 1999 and June 2000. It involved data collection from Health Institutions and all stakeholders in water resources management in the Techiman District. Questionnaires were also administered to interview a cross-section of the People in the district. Two main sources of water are used for domestic and agricultural activities, the treated and untreated sources. The untreated water sources, (especially river, streams and rainwater) are patronised by over 65% of the people in the district. The major stream in the district have reduced in volume over the years due to the destruction of vegetation around them while the vast potential of using rainwater for agricultural and domestic activities is yet to be developed in the district Due to the dormancy of Water Management Committees, lack of locally trained mechanics, high cost of spare parts and low incomes from the sale of’ water, the future of wells in the district looks gloomy. Pipe-borne water systems are on the other hand well managed by the Ghana Water Company Limited Solid waste management and public education on sanitation, safe water and health, have see some improvement between 1 9% and 1999, resulting in considerable decline in the incidence of water related diseases. There is however the need for more intensive education on safe water, sanitation and health. Technology on harvesting and storage of rainwater in more hygienic ways must be developed and surface water bodies arid hand dug wells protected to avoid contaminations from any source.

Source: KNUST
Investigate the extent to which corporate governance and agency problems exist in the Sunyani Regional Hospital

The significance of good corporate governance practice in the running of corporate organizations cannot be undervalued. The growing effect of good practice of corporate governance across the world has been critically connected to the current corporate scandals and frauds. These scandals and frauds fundamentally lead to the letdown of executives of organizations to efficiently implement the regulatory frameworks and legal pertaining to organizational governance. The case study tries to probe the extent to which corporate governance and agency problems exist in the Regional Hospital, Sunyani. The researcher used systematic sampling technique to select a total sample size of 210 (Core management- 7 and junior staff-203) from the total population of 830.The researcher used both secondary and primary data as sources of data for the study; both the interview and structured questionnaire were used to collect primary data. SPSS version 21.0 was used to analyze the data and the findings were presented using frequencies, tables and charts. The study found that over 80% of the staff members of Regional Hospital, Sunyani have appreciable knowledge on corporate governance and agency problems with regards to definition and concepts. It was found that the Regional Hospital, Sunyani practice good governance as confirmed by majority of the staff. Chi-square test was performed to find out the association between good corporate governance and organizational performance and the results showed that there was strong significant association between good corporate governance and organizational performance in terms of growth and decline. The case study recommends that the authorities of the organization should do due diligence in identifying and selecting candidates who have good reputation, wellmotivated and enthusiastic to the health profession when recruiting

Source: KNUST
Investigating barriers to tax payment in the informal sector of Ghana: a case study in Nkwanta north area.

The fiscal and economic growth of any country hinges largely on the amount of fund the government can raise to ensure good governance through the provision of the services and infrastructure that citizens needed. Taxes form a major part of generating revenue for government spending and there seem to exist a large sector of the economy which is not properly taxed. The dynamics in the informal sector makes it difficult for its taxation even though it has the potential to be a major revenue generator for the government than the formal sector. The study was therefore conducted to examine the barriers to tax payment in the informal sector of Ghana using the Nkwanta North Area as a case. The study adopted a descriptive research design since the research is a case study and questionnaires were the data collection instruments employed by the researcher to collect data using the purposive sampling technique. The findings of the study revealed that annual income generated from the informal sector is very low and the majority of businesses in the informal sector do not pay tax because most of them are not registered for tax. The study also shows evidence that tax payment is affected by business factors that informal sector business face such as poor record-keeping as well as behavioural factors such as perceived corruption of tax officials. Also, the study identified low revenue generation, fines and poor development as implications that emanate from non-payment of tax by the informal sector. The study recommended that tax agencies must adopt workable strategies and programs for registering businesses in the informal sector. Taxpayers in the informal sector should also be trained in the areas of bookkeeping and on related tax issues while the government works to simplify tax payment for informal sector businesses.

Source: KNUST