ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
The Extent of Compliance of the Public Procurement Act, Act 663 of 2003: A Case of Tamale Central Hospital

Since independence, there has been a serious effort to regulate and manage pp activities in Ghana. The public procurement Act (PPA), Act 663 was passed in December 2003 to provide for public procurement, establish the Public Procurement Board, make administrative and institutional arrangements for procurement; stipulate tendering procedures and provide for purposes connected with these. As an integral part of contemporary government, at all levels, public procurement is part of the ongoing transformation of the public sector. Increasingly, observers have made the case that public procurement leaders should embrace a strategic approach to public procurement as a management function in collaboration with other government leaders to produce cost saving, reduced cycle time, better use of human capital, empowerment and inventory reductions (McCue and Gianacis 2001;mather and Cleveland 2003).The study sought to identify the extent of compliance of the PPA, Act 663 of 2003 in practice at the Tamale Central Hospital and assess the effects it can have on procurement practices at the facility. Primary data was elicited 72 suppliers and another 36 staff of the hospital that are involve in procurement. A well structured questionnaire was designed to fetch information from the respondents on their socio-demographic characteristics, and some indicators of quality assurance. Results for the study indicate that there are perceptual differences between service suppliers and staff about the extent of compliance of the PPA at the hospital. The hospital has a procurement team, which uses mainly over ten processes of quality indicators such as the time of bidding, evidence of business registration, tax details, and comparative prices. We also found that, the level of general staff participation in public procurement processes of the Tamale Central Hospital is minimal.

Source: KNUST
Extent of illicit cigarette market from single stick sales in Ghana: findings from a cross-sectional survey

Objective This study aims to measure the extent of illicit cigarette consumption from single stick sales, to determine the nature and types of illicit cigarettes present in Ghana, and to identify the factors associated with illicit cigarette consumption in Ghana. Design A cross-sectional study using empty cigarette packs generated by 1 day’s single stick cigarette sales collected from cigarette vendors. Setting Five large cities (Accra, Kumasi, Takoradi, Tamale and Bolgatanga) and three border towns (Aflao, Paga/ Hamele and Elubo) in the northern, middle and coastal belt of Ghana. Procedure and participants Ten areas were randomly selected in each city/town, and all shops selling cigarettes within 1 km of the central point were surveyed. Outcome measures (1) Estimates of the share of illicit cigarette packs in the total cigarette sales from vendors selling single stick cigarettes in Ghana; (2) nature and types of illicit cigarette packs; (3) factors associated with illicit cigarette sales in Ghana. Results Of a total of 4461 packs, about 20% (95% CI 18.3 to 20.7) were found to be illicit. Aflao (Ghana-Togo border) and Tamale (Ghana-Burkina Faso border) had the highest percentage of illicit cigarette sales at 99% and 46%, respectively (p<0.001). Over half of the illicit packs originated from Togo (51%), followed by Nigeria (15%) and then Cote d’Ivoire (10%). Adjusted and unadjusted logistic regression models indicated that convenience stores, border towns, pack price and the northern zone had higher odds of illicit cigarette sales. Conclusion To effectively tackle illicit cigarettes, market surveillance and strengthening supply chain control are required, particularly at the border towns and the northern region of the country

Source: KNUST
Extent of integration in the Ghanaian sawmill industry

A survey into the extent of integration in the sawmill industry in Ghana has been conducted. Questionnaires were administered to Thirty (30) sawmills and personal interviews were conducted in some institutions directly related to the industry. Private Ghanaian entrepreneurs dominate the industry with respect to forward integrated sawmills and most of these sawmills do not own concession. The structure of the sawmill industries studied reveals a vertical growth rather than a horizontal one, but this is not well developed. Marketing of the downstream products was export oriented with little attention paid to the local market. The results of the survey also revealed that constraints inhibiting sawmill integration are raw material supply, marketing, finance, technology and management. Utilisation of wood residue has not achieved it fullest impact as far as the forward integrated sawmills are concerned. Based on the above problems it is recommended that to successfully expand exports of higher valued wood products from Ghana we need to integrate in the forward direction by evolving strategies which will combat and eradicate the identified constraints in the tertiary sector and practically plunge the sector onto a stage capable of being highly competitive in the international market. It is strongly believed that this approach holds a promising future for the sustainability of the sawmill industry in Ghana.

Source: KNUST
The extent of involvement of persons with disabilities in community development in the Amansie West District: a case study of PWDS of the Manso Atwere Zone

Persons with disabilities (PWDs) despite being disproportionate users of support services in health, social care and education settings, continue to face significant barriers and challenges to participate in decision making and programmes in the community. The current study, therefore, seeks to investigate the extent of PWDs participation in community development in the Amansie West District. The study predominantly adopted a descriptive field survey to collect principally primary data from PWDs, Chiefs and other opinion leaders in the Amansie West District. These 100 respondents were sampled through a multistage sampling procedure. The selection methods involved both simple random and non-probabilistic purposive sampling. From the study, only a limited number of PWDs are involved in development initiatives in the Manso Atwere zone of the Amansie West District. The low level of involvement could probably be attributed to the absence of mechanism for including PWDs in decision making. The level of PWDs participation in the community development activities in the district is challenged by their low level of education, health, unemployment and social exclusion. The predominant form of participation by the PWDs in the communities is in the form of group. The nature of PWDs involvement in community development is largely managerial participation. The male gender dominates in all aspects of PWDs participation in community development in the studied district. The major factors found to influence PWDs involvement in development activities in the district were personal health or impairment, level of literacy or education, economic well-being or livelihood and socio-cultural factors. On this basis, the current study recommends to community members and stakeholders the need to increase PWDs participation in community development, provide mechanism for PWDs inclusion in decision making, and gender equality in PWDs involvement.

Source: KNUST
Extent of use of computer-aided project planning and control systems in the Ghanaian construction industry

The scope of infrastructure development is growing larger and more complex as time goes on making the various resource inputs – human, material and plants and machinery – required for their successful completion large as well. It is therefore essential that the entire process be properly planned and controlled in order to ensure this. Computer-Aided Project Planning and Control Systems (CAPPCS), software, provides the various mechanisms for the effective coalition of all the resources required for the planning and control of projects. This in turn serves as the basis for management decisions that ultimately leads to the success of projects. This research was aimed at determining the extent of use of CAPPCS in the Ghanaian construction industry. A descriptive survey was used to solicit information from professionals in the industry. This was done through selfadministered questionnaires. The survey population was made up of professionals from construction consulting and professionals working with D1 construction organisations in Ghana. The data garnered was analysed using descriptive statistics, a quantitative approach. The findings of this research indicated a general awareness and use of CAPPCS by the respondents and the organisations that they worked for. The use was however limited to basic scheduling functions. It was evident that more needs to be done in terms of training and sensitising of professionals on the use of CAPPCS.

Source: KNUST
Extraction and Application of Plant Dyes to Serve as Colourants for Food and Textiles

Synthetic or chemical food dyes are used locally to colour pastries, beef, and pig feet among others which has consequential health implications. Synthetic fabric dyes used in teaching and learning of textiles are also expensive and often inaccessible to some schools for lack of funds to purchase them, hence the need to plant dyes for use as alternative colourant for food and textiles. The study based on qualitative research method employed interviews, observation and experimentation to study thirty (30) different local plants under art studio conditions. The dye extraction process involved the use of the bark, leaves, seeds, whole fruits, and roots of the different plants, each of which was boiled for 30 minutes. Among the plant samples studied, only three did not yield dyes that could successfully colour fabric while the other 27 yielded colourful dyes that could be used to teach basic skills in tie-dye, batik, printing, dyeing of yarns for macramé, and crocheting without the use of mordants. Using lime juice, baking powder and alum as mordants either enhanced or slightly changed the colour of dyes obtained. Dyes obtained from Prekese (Tetrapleura tetraptera), Widie aba (Momodora myristica), and Hwentea (Xyanlopia aethiopicum) which are known spices were too weak to stain the test fabric but found useful in flavouring for drinks made from Hibiscus Sabdariffa, Tefashia, Sorghum bicolour and Samia plants. Boiling yam, rice and spaghetti in Tefashia dye solutions gave the three a rich golden colour as if they were cooked with curry powder. Though Sorghum bicolour proved unsuitable for spaghetti, it was a good colourant for rice while Hibiscus Sabdariffa was found most suitable for drinks. The results suggest that very aesthetically pleasing colourants can be derived from the local environment for use as instructional resource for the teaching and learning of colouring techniques in Visual Arts and Home Economics and as suitable organic replacements for the chemical colourants used in the food industry.

Source: KNUST
Extraction and characterization of Borassus Aethiopum kernel oil

Borassus aethiopum (African Palmyra palm) fruits are underutilized but have currently received a great attention in the search for alternative food sources to supplement the current food demands of the increasing world population. Borassus aethiopum fruits flour and other products have been produced successfully in previous works. However, the oil yield and characterization of oil from B. aethiopum kernel had not been evaluated. The main objective of this study therefore, was to extract and characterize the oil from B. aethiopum kernel. The fruit nuts were manually cracked with a machete to obtain the kernels. The kernels were chopped into smaller pieces, dried and milled using the hammer mill. Oil extraction was carried out using the Soxhlet apparatus with petroleum ether as the organic solvent. The physicochemical properties, oil yield and four fatty acids were determined by standard procedures. The results indicated an oil yield of 1.56%, a peroxide value of 49.85 ± 0.17 meqO2/Kg, iodine value of 167.00 ± 2.70 mg I2/g, saponification value of 196.69 ± 0.51 mgKOH/g and FFA of 9.56 ± 0.17%. Also, 6-methyl laurate was the highest among the four detected fatty acids in B. aethiopum kernel oil. Based on the yield obtained, commercial production of B. aethiopum fruit oil may not be economical.

Source: KNUST
Extraction and Refining of Slack Wax from Residual Fuel Oil from Tema Oil Refinery to Produce Petroleum Wax (Paraffin Wax) for Industrial Application

Residual fuel oil from Tema oil refinery was fractionally distilled under reduced pressure of 0.001 maHg and two fractions with boiling points range 32-33oC and 33-42oC was collected. The distillates were subjected to urea dewaxing process. The urea adduct was separated into semi-solid hydrocarbon phase (alack wax) and an aqueous urea phase. An appreciable quantity of the slack wax was isplated from the distillate by solvent dewaxing technique using methyl ethylhetone (MIX) – toluene mixture (4:1 v/v). The slack wax was then deoiled using the same solvent system. The deoiled crude wax was subjected to various methods of purification or refinement. The sun bleaching method (as suggested by Root) (36) caused virtually no change in the colour. The wax was, however, successful refined by contact filtration and percolation techniques using carbon tetrachloride, xylane and benzene as solvents. The acid-fuller’s earth’s contact filtration method changed the original pale brown colour to pale yellow with a yield of 47.2%. The wax was, however, balance to white by separately percolating through bauxite, activated charcoal and fuller’s earth. The yield ranged from 75 to 81%.The physiochemical characteristics of the leaches waxes were determined by (ASTN D87); drop melting point (ASTN D127) and congealing point (ASTN D938) methods. The values obtained for the waxes bleached by the different methods differ slightly and ranged from 61-640C; 61.5-64.50C, 60.9-63.9 respectively. The oil content of the wax was determined by ASTN D72 method and the value for the bleached waxes were calculated and found to range from (0.282-0.469). Test for carbonizable substances was carried out on the bleached waxes using D612 method and were found to pass the carbonizable test. The specific gravity was determined by floating wax method and by Archimedes principles employing a sinker. The values for the various waxes ranged from (0.899-0.915; 0.897-0.914) for the above methods respectively. The refractive index was determined on the molten or liquid form of the wax at 800C using Abbe’s Refractometer. The readings ranged from 1.4281-1.4285 for the waxes bleached by the various methods.The molecular weight was determined for all the bleached waxes by means of cryoscopic (freezing point depression) method, - Rest method. The values ranges from (392.85 – 401.0), average being 396.9 g per mole. The physiocochemical property compare better with those of paraffin wax than those of microcrystalline wax.

Source: KNUST
Extraction and characterisation of pectin from cocoa bean shells

ABSTRACT Cocoa bean shells constitute the major waste generated from the processing of cocoa beans. The composition of the shells shows that they can be nutritionally and economically important. The objective of this study was to extract and characterise pectin from cocoa bean shells, with focus on finding the optimum extraction conditions. This was achieved with the conventional hot dilute acid extraction method used for commercial pectin production from citrus peels and apple pomace, followed by precipitation and washing with ethanol. 12 M hydrochloric acid was used to acidify water to pH 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, 3.5 and 4.0. Extractions were carried out at temperatures 60, 70 and 80°C, for time of 0.5, 1 and 2 h. The effects of each of the conditions on yield and other properties of pectin were evaluated. The optimum extraction conditions were found to be pH 3.5, extraction time of 2 h and 80°C extraction temperature. Depending on the conditions under which cocoa bean shells were treated, both high methoxyl and low methoxyl pectins were extracted. However, at the optimum conditions, high methoxyl pectin was produced. Under the optimum conditions the yield was 4.7%, the degree of esterification was 68.9% and the anhydrouronic acid content was 71.2%. While the methoxyl content was 8.6%, the equivalent mass was 805.8 g/eq. Moisture and ash contents were 6.7 and 10.3%, respectively, and the pH of the pectin hydrocolloid was 3.7. Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectra confirmed the presence of compounds found in the pectin structure, through the identification of functional groups. The intrinsic viscosity varied between 0.075 – 0.088 m3/kg and the molecular mass ranged from 23,470 – 42,384 g/mol. The study showed that cocoa bean shells could become another good source of commercial pectin. Further research focusing on the use of pectin extracted from cocoa bean shells as gelling agent, emulsifier, thickening agent, texturiser and or stabilising agent would reveal the areas of application in the food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries.

Source: KNUST
Extraction of cassava (Manihot Esculenta Cranz) starch with the aid of pectolytic enzymes from Saccharomyces cerevisiae (ATCC 52712): Effects of cassava varietal differences on the process.

This work sought to study and compare the effects of various dosages of pectolytic enzymes from S. cerevisiae ATCC 52712 on yield and physicochemical parameters of starch fromfive cassava varieties (‘Nkabom’, ‘Afisiafi’, ‘Dokuduade’, ‘Bankyehemaa’ and ‘Esambankye’) and to explore feasibility for scale-up production with the variety that gives the best response to enzyme treatment. Generally, application of pectolytic enzymes significantly (P<0.05) increased starch yield and recovery rates in all selected cassava varieties.However, optimization of both yield and recovery rate was dependent on variety,enzyme dosage and holding time for enzyme action. An enzyme dosage of 0.02% was found to significantly (P<0.05) peak starch yield in ‘Esambankye’ and ‘Nkabom’varieties at 0.5 hrs and 1 hour in the ‘Afisiafi’ variety; 0.025% enzyme dosage at 0.5 hours holding time was the optimum treatment combination for starch yield in both ‘Bankyehemaa’ and ‘Dokuduade’ varieties. Enzyme treatment significantly enhanced the release of larger starch granules thus subsequently enhancing water binding capacity, solubility and swelling power of starches from most varieties; starches from the treated samples were also significantly(P<0.05) lighter in colour;crude fibre, crude protein and ash contents were however not affected by enzyme treatment.Enzyme treatment also significantly (P<0.05) reduced the time and temperature required for starch gelatinization without affecting the starch’s viscosities. Time required for attainment of peak viscosity was significantly (P<0.05) reduced in starches from the ‘Afisiafi’ and ‘Esambankye’ butdid not have any significant effect (P>0.05) on peak viscosities of starches from the ‘Bankyehemaa’. Apart from starches from the ‘Afisiafi’, all other starches from enzyme treated mashes were significantly less stable at 95OC. Hot paste viscosity of ‘Bankyehemaa’ starches were also significantly (P<0.05) enhanced by enzyme application. The technology did not also affect the stability of starches from the ‘Nkabom’ and ‘Bankyehemaa’ varieties when their starches were held at 50OC. ‘Esambankye’ and ‘Nkabom’ recorded highest values for setback viscosity due to enzyme treatment. Given the good responses of ‘Bankyehemaa’ to enzyme treatment, its adoption for feasibility studies at the industrial scale gave an overall enhanced yield and flow rates of 44.45% and 46.15% respectively over the control. The study therefore showed that although application of pectolytic enzymes to starch extraction enhances yield, the technology is affected by varietal difference. It also enhances many physicochemical properties of starches for application to industry. Given the heavy dependence of most of Ghana’s industries on starch, the technology if made available would greatly boost the productivity of these sectors at relatively lower cost.

Source: KNUST
Extraction, quantification and determination of some physicochemical properties of “whole neem seed oil” and its “fractionated portions” and their effect on the lowering of blood sugar levels in alloxan induced diabetic rabbits.

A mass of 2.562kg of dried and milled seeds of neem tree, Azadirachta indica, family Meliaceae, was refluxed continuously at a temperature of 60 °C using 5.2L of petroleum ether (40-60 °C) and a mass of 950.04g (1050m1) of the neem seed oil which represents a percentage yield of 41.96% was obtained. The neem seed oil had an acid value of 4.56±0.11, saponification value of 191.25±0.84, a pH of 4.85±0.15, a refractive index of 1.4653 at 29 °C, a density of 0.9048 at 29 °C and a bitter taste. On fractionation of 500ml of the whole neem seed oil, the acidic portion constituted the largest portion with a mass and pH of 226.26g (250m1) and 4.3 5±0.10 respectively whiles the basic portion constituted the smallest portion with a mass and pH of 67.88g (75ml) and 8.50 ±0.24 respectively. The neutral portion had a mass and pH of 144.80g (l6Oml) and 7.75 ±0.01 respectively. 2.5m1/kg of the whole neem seed oil and its fractionated portions were administered to alloxan induced diabetic rabbits to monitor their hypoglycaemic effect for five days. 1-lypoglycaemic effect was observed in the whole neem seed oil and its fractionated portions. The whole neem seed oil and the acidic portion of the neem seed oil had extremely significant effect (P<0.001), the basic portion of the neem seed oil had a very significant effect (P<0.01) whiles the neutral portion of the neem seed oil had no significant effect (P>0.05) when compared with glibenclamide at the end of the fifth day. The data suggests that the whole neem seed oil and the acidic portion of the neem seed oil could be of benefit in controlling the blood sugar in diabetes mellitus.

Source: KNUST
The Eye Care Needs of Persons with Visual Impairment in a District Hospital in Ghana

Almost 80% of the world‟s visual impairment is treatable or preventable. Regardless of this, millions of people are at risk of visual loss due to the lack of eye-care services. The study examined eye care needs of persons with visual impairments in a District Hospital in Ghana, specifically to assess the availability of eye care services, challenges and measures to improve accessibility. A qualitative approach was adopted to interview persons with visual impairments and eye care providers. Purposive sampling was used to select a sample size of 20; 15 visually impaired and 5 health care providers. A semi-structured interview guide was adopted to capture data onto a voice recorder and transcribed into written notes. Thematic content analysis was used to analyse themes generated from the data according to the objectives. The study found that eye care services were available to some extent but accessibility to the services was limited due to inadequate transport fares and poor health insurance coverage. Aids to accompany clients were limited. Poor infrastructure and equipment limited the ability of healthcare providers to offer effective services. The study recommends that outreach services should be encouraged to provide services at the doorstep to majority and refer complex cases to hospital to reduce cost of transportation. The study further recommends that relevant infrastructure and equipment should be provided by government through the Ghana Blind Union to improve eye care services and also to ensure that health insurance policies adequately cover diagnosis, treatment and the provision of assistive devices.

Source: KNUST