ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
New sources of sorghum resistant genotypes to downy mildew disease in Uganda

Kumi F, Badji A, Mwila N, Odong T, Ochwo-Ssemakula M, Tusiime G, Gibson P, Biruma M, Prom KL, Cuevas HE, Agbahoungba S, Rubaihayo P. 2019. New sources of sorghum resistant genotypes to downy mildew disease in Uganda. Biodiversitas 20: 3391-3397. Sorghum downy mildew (SDM) disease is still prevalent in Uganda at varying levels of incidence and severity. In this study, a total of 100 sorghum genotypes, five (5) from (U.SA, India, and Sudan) and 95 genotypes from Uganda were evaluated for resistance to downy mildew and other agronomic traits during the second growing season of 2016 (August-December). The experiment was conducted in two locations at Makerere University Agricultural Research Institute at Kabanyolo (MUARIK) and Abi-Zonal Agricultural Research and Development Institute (Abi-ZARDI) research station at Arua. The experimental design used was 10 x 10 alpha lattice design with three replicates. Data were collected on plant disease incidence (PDI), plant disease severity (PDS), area under disease progress curve (AUDPC), days to 50% flowering, plant height, 1000 seed weight, and grain yield. Results for analysis of variance showed highly significant differences (P < 0.001) in genotypes, location, and AUDPC, yield and yield components. Disease incidence varied significantly (P < 0.001) between locations, and Arua recorded highest disease incidence and severity of 80.6 and 2.8, respectively. Results from correlation analysis showed a highly significant (P < 0.001) positive association of downy mildew disease incidence with AUDPC (0.835) which suggests that the severity of SDM disease increased with disease incidence, whiles significant (P < 0.001) negative correlation was recorded for days to 50 % flowering (-0.302), 1000 seed weight (-0.471), and grain yield (-0.585), suggesting that grain yield and yield component decreased significantly with increase in SDM incidence and severity. Two resistant (PI 656061 and PI 533831) and four moderately resistant (E 40, MAKSO 8, PI 655990 and Epuripur) genotypes were identified from this study. These genotypes were recommended for sorghum breeding program against downy mildew disease

Source: UCC
Newborn Health Data Transfer in the Cape Coast Metropolis, Ghana

Newborn data is important for decision making and planning purposes. Data transfer from facilities to district, regional and national levels must have high level of quality to benefit from its use for planning and decision making. The objective of this research was to assess the quality and accuracy of newborn health data transfer from facilities to the DHIMS II application. The study was conducted within the Cape Coast Metropolis. Four facilities (two public and two private hospitals) were selected for the study. Facilities registers were compared with summary sheets as well as the data in DHIMS II. The study revealed that there were data inaccuracies across all the indicators ranging from -46.5% to 89.3%. Percentage errors 1 and 3 were extremely high due to the inability of some facilities to produce aggregated forms. Percentage error 2 was generally low for all indicators as compared to percentage errors 1 and 3 except for institutional neonatal deaths with percentage error of 89.3%. The others range from -1.4% to 4.4% which means that there was very little error in transferring the facility register data to the web-based DHIMS-II. The overall percentage errors 1, 2 and 3 in transfer of the data were 7.5% (95% CI = 6.5% to 8.6%), 43.1% (95% CI = 41.8% to 44.3%) and 3.6% (95% CI = 3.2% to 4.0%) respectively. Newborn health data quality is essential for planning and decision making to enhance service quality

Source: UCC
Newborn Health Data Transfer in the Cape Coast Metropolis, Ghana

Abstract. Newborn data is important for decision making and planning purposes. Data transfer from facilities to district, regional and national levels must have high level of quality to benefit from its use for planning and decision making. The objective of this research was to assess the quality and accuracy of newborn health data transfer from facilities to the DHIMS II application. The study was conducted within the Cape Coast Metropolis. Four facilities (two public and two private hospitals) were selected for the study. Facilities registers were compared with summary sheets as well as the data in DHIMS II. The study revealed that there were data inaccuracies across all the indicators ranging from -46.5% to 89.3%. Percentage errors 1 and 3 were extremely high due to the inability of some facilities to produce aggregated forms. Percentage error 2 was generally low for all indicators as compared to percentage errors 1 and 3 except for institutional neonatal deaths with percentage error of 89.3%. The others range from -1.4% to 4.4% which means that there was very little error in transferring the facility register data to the web-based DHIMS-II. The overall percentage errors 1, 2 and 3 in transfer of the data were 7.5% (95% CI = 6.5% to 8.6%), 43.1% (95% CI = 41.8% to 44.3%) and 3.6% (95% CI = 3.2% to 4.0%) respectively. Newborn health data quality is essential for planning and decision making to enhance service quality.

Source: UCC
Newborn Health Data Transfer in the Cape Coast Metropolis, Ghana

Newborn data is important for decision making and planning purposes. Data transfer from facilities to district, regional and national levels must have high level of quality to benefit from its use for planning and decision making. The objective of this research was to assess the quality and accuracy of newborn health data transfer from facilities to the DHIMS II application. The study was conducted within the Cape Coast Metropolis. Four facilities (two public and two private hospitals) were selected for the study. Facilities registers were compared with summary sheets as well as the data in DHIMS II. The study revealed that there were data inaccuracies across all the indicators ranging from -46.5% to 89.3%. Percentage errors 1 and 3 were extremely high due to the inability of some facilities to produce aggregated forms. Percentage error 2 was generally low for all indicators as compared to percentage errors 1 and 3 except for institutional neonatal deaths with percentage error of 89.3%. The others range from -1.4% to 4.4% which means that there was very little error in transferring the facility register data to the web-based DHIMS-II. The overall percentage errors 1, 2 and 3 in transfer of the data were 7.5% (95% CI = 6.5% to 8.6%), 43.1% (95% CI = 41.8% to 44.3%) and 3.6% (95% CI = 3.2% to 4.0%) respectively. Newborn health data quality is essential for planning and decision making to enhance service quality.

Source: UCC
Newspaper review show in the broadcast media space in Ghana: An exploratory qualitative study

Ghana’s public sphere has witnessed a growing media presence which has enhanced the relay of information to the citizenry. By this, society is given a full spectrum of alternatives to access media. Amid this atmosphere is a platform labeled the “Newspaper Review Show” which appears to have generated some sort of contention since its inception among newspaper publishers on one hand and broadcast stations on the other. Using an exploratory qualitative approach, this study has shown that review of newspaper content is pervasive in the landscape and the selective style of review of major agenda has affected readership, revenue of newspaper outlets, and reading culture, among others. However, the article also contended that falling readership is attributed to some factors other than only review of newspaper content

Source: UCC
Nexus Of Agricultural-Land Use Policies And Landscape Dynamics In The Rainforest Agro-Ecological Zone Of Ghana

Despite the positive development, the Rain Forest-Agro-ecological Zone (RFAZ) is characterised by a loss of natural resources and inadequate food security systems. Studies conducted in the Ahanta West Municipality of the RFAZ concentrated on the biophysical features as a drive for landscape changes without highlighting how policies shape landscape dynamics. The study used various methods, including documentary review, structured and indepth interviews, and geospatial techniques. The study specifically assessed Rubber Outgrower Plantation Project (ROPP) and Norpalm Smallholder Scheme Project (NSSP) due to their deterrent development to the ecological growth of the landscape. The result established that ROPP does not satisfy the conservation pillar of sustainable landscape management. The transitional probability analysis showed that by 2032, the landscape will experience a shift from oil palm farming to rubber cultivation under the economic benefit scenario. Again, oil palm cultivation will be reduced under the social benefit scenario by 15.52%, while there was an increase in the ecological protection scenario (16.83%). The study also identified that crop production, population growth, and land tenure were the main factors that drove the adoption of ROPP and NSSP on the landscape. The results further pointed out that converting croplands to rubber might affect future food security and human well-being. The study recommends that the Food and Agriculture Department of the Ahanta-West district assembly regulate cash crop farmers' activities in the landscape. Land Use and Spatial Planning Authority should also educate farmers on land use decision-making toward rubber cultivation.

Source: UCC
Night-time decibel hell: mapping noise exposure zones and individual annoyance ratings in an urban environment in Ghana

Although accumulating evidence over the past thirty years indicates that noise is an environmental stressor in residential settings, much of the data emanated from studies in high-intensity, noise impact zones around airports or major roads. Little is known about religious noise, especially at night, which is increasingly a growing concern for both the general public and policy-makers in sub-Saharan Africa. Using geographical information systems (GIS), this study measured and mapped exposure to religious noise in a rapidly urbanising municipality in Ghana. Quantitative noise risk assessment was used to evaluate the risk of religious noise induced hearing loss to residents in the exposed neighbourhoods. The results show that all neighbourhoods where churches were situated had at least one location with significant risk of noise-induced hearing loss. However, there was no statistically significant relationship between neighbourhoods where religious noise exposure was the highest and where noise annoyance was the highest. The magnitude of the noise values for night-time exposure is remarkable particularly given that excessive night-time noise exposure has the greatest detrimental effect on public health. There is the need to focus on vulnerable groups, sensitive hours of the night, and possible confounding with air pollution in order to wholly address this potential hazard

Source: UCC
Nitrogen mineralization trends of applied Mucuna pruriens var. utilis

The effect of method of applying Mucuna pruriens var. utilis on the release of mineral nitrogen in an acid soil was investigated in the laboratory. The above-ground parts of M. pruriens were dried, milled and applied at a rate of 0.3 g 100 g-1 of field moist soil. Two methods of applying milled M. pruriens were used, namely surface application (T2) and incorporation (T3). The control treatment (T1), involving soil only, was also used. The treated soil samples were incubated at room temperature for periods ranging from 0 to 90 days while maintaining their contents at 60 per cent water holding capacity. At the end of the appropriate incubation period, the mineral N contents of the soil samples were measured by extracting soil with 2 M KCI, filtered and the filtrates were then steam-distilled. The mineral N released increased with increasing incubation period. The T1, T2 and T3 had cumulative NH4+-N values of 5, 5 and 8 kg ha-1, respectively, after the 90 days’ incubation period. The incorporation treatment had the largest amount of NO3-N (66 kg ha-1), followed by the surface application treatment (54 kg ha-1). The control treatment had the least (10 kg ha-1). The soil into which M. pruriens was incorporated (T3) had larger cumulative amount of mineral N (74 kg ha-1) than either T2 (59 kg ha-1) or T1 (15 kg ha-1). The efficiency of mineral N released from M. pruriens was 45 per cent for T2 and 61 per cent for T3. The results indicated that M. pruriens var. utilis, when applied to the soil, could be a potential source of mineral N for crop production

Source: UCC
Nitrous oxide emissions from soils amended with polyphenols and cowpea residues

Polyphenols can influence the rate of N2O emission and N mineralization in leguminous crop residues by affecting the activities of residue decomposers or by forming protein complexes. A laboratory microcosm incubation study was conducted to assess the effect of three concentrations of ferulic, vanillic and tannic acids on N2O emissions and inorganic N dynamics in a tropical soil amended with cowpea residue. The results show that N2O emission and mineral N concentrations in the sole cowpea amended soils were significantly higher than in all the polyphenol treatments. Decrease in N2O emissions and N concentrations showed a direct relation with the polyphenol concentrations. However, at the same concentration, the polyphenols did not differ significantly in their ability to decrease N2O emissions and N concentrations even though tannic acid showed the highest numerical decrease. The tannic acid lowered N mineralization and N2O production through protein binding while ferulic and vanillic acids decreased N2O production through N immobilization by stimulating microbial activity. It is concluded that the addition of polyphenols to tropical soils amended with cowpea residue is likely to lower N2O emissions and inorganic N concentration, but the magnitude of reduction will depend on the type and concentration of the polyphenol compounds added

Source: UCC
No Association between Helicobacter Pylori Infection and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus; A Case- control Study in the North-Western Part of Ghana

Background: Patients with diabetes mellitus are prone to infections as a result of impaired immune status as a consequence of hyperglycemia. Previous studies addressing the relationship between Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection and diabetes mellitus have yielded conflicting results. Objective: This study aimed to determine the prevalence and the determinants of H. pylori infection among type 2 diabetes patients (T2DM) and its associated predisposing factors. Methods: This case-control study enrolled 112 T2DM patients and 83 healthy adults (controls) who attended the Wa Regional Hospital. Sociodemographic characteristics were collected using questionnaire and anthropometrics were measured according to standard procedure. Stool samples were analysed for H. pylori infection using the Onsite H. pylori stool antigen rapid test cassettes while fasting blood glucose (FBG) was also estimated by using the glucometer. Results: There was no significant difference in the prevalence of H. pylori infection between the two groups [46% (cases) vs 39% (controls); p= 0.3073]. The mean ages of H. pylori positive T2DM patients and H. pylori negative T2DM patients were 56.83±10.50 and 52.81±11.65 years respectively. The mean FBG increased as BMI increased in diabetes and non-diabetes, with obese diabetic patients showing abnormal mean FBG level (7.76±1.44 mmol/l). Diabetes patients showed a higher mean FBG (6.526±0.1683) than the non-diabetes (4.272±0.1099) as body mass index (BMI) increased and the difference was statistically significant (p<0.0001). Conclusion: H. pylori infection was not significantly associated with T2DM. Hyperglycemia, BMI and gender were not H. pylori-related predisposing factors in type 2 diabetic patients.

Source: UCC
Nominal Recategorization in Ghanaian English: A Corpus-Based Study

The pluralization of the English language has led to several world Englishes. Following extensive debates on the existence of Ghanaian English since the 1970s, relatively recent research has proceeded to describe aspects of its phonology, vocabulary, and grammar. The present study investigates nominal recategorization in Ghanaian English using corpus data from International Corpus English (ICE)-Ghana. The study adopts a two-pronged theoretical framework, comprising Braj Kachru’s (1995) Three Concentric Circles and Edgar Schneider’s (2007) Dynamic Models. The study is qualitative, using a corpus-based approach. From the analysis, three findings were revealed. Firstly, nominal recategorization in Ghanaian English undergoes three processes: from mass to count nouns, count to mass nouns, and dual to count or collective nouns. These recategorizations are marked by the addition and/or omission of linguistic items and semantic implicatures. Secondly, the morphosyntactic indicators in the recategorization process consist of adding the plural inflection morpheme (-s) to originally mass nouns, modification by quantifiers and determiners, and using partitive constructions. Nominal recategorization is common among educated Ghanaians, possibly highlighting the transcendence of the variety from homes to educational contexts (Afful, 2006; Ngula, 2015). On some of the implications offered, the study restricts the generalization of the theories used to all contexts. Additionally, the dominance of nominal recategorization in written discourse reflects some developments in standardizing GhE. Further research on sociolinguistic factors characterizing recategorized forms was proposed as one of the recommendations.

Source: UCC
Non UK University Students Stress Levels and their Coping Strategies

The aim of the study was to investigate stress levels, experiences of stress and coping strategies of non-UK students studying at the University of Manchester, UK. The main purpose was to consider their perceived stress levels, their experiences of stress and their coping strategies and to link these to the continents from which they came, their gender and whether they were graduates or undergraduates. This research consisted of two phases. The first phase was a survey that used self-administered structured questionnaire of 329 non-UK students who completed the perceived stress scale (PSS), the inventory of college students recent life experiences (ICSRLE) and the coping inventory for stressful situations (CISS). In addition, a further 74 UK students completed only the (PSS). Phase two was a qualitative study consisting of open-ended in-depth interviews of 16 volunteers. In all, 403 students participated in this study. Key findings indicated that, time pressure and work demands were the non- UK students’ most stressful experiences. Anxiety, academic alienation and future academic prospects and unfamiliarity with the educational and cultural norms added to their difficulties. Gender was the most significant predictor of non-UK students’ stressful experiences, whilst female students expressed higher levels of distress than their male counterparts. In addition, task and avoidance strategies were used by all non-UK students to cope with stress, but European students tended to use more adaptive coping strategies than did Asian and African students.

Source: UCC
Non-cancer health risk assessment from exposure to cyanide by resident adults from the mining operations of Bogoso gold limited in Ghana

Cyanide is a very toxic chemical that is used to extract gold from its ores. Wastewaters from gold mining companies such as Bogoso Gold Limited (BGL) contain cyanide and other potentially toxic chemicals that have adverse effects on human beings and aquatic organisms. This study was conducted to evaluate the human health risk assessment from exposure to free cyanide via oral and dermal contact of surface/underground water by resident adults within the concession of Bogoso Gold Limited. The chronic non-cancer health risk from exposure to cyanide in River Bogo Upstream is 230 and 43 (by Central Tendency Exposure (CTE) parameters respectively). This means that approximately 230 and 43 resident adults are likely to suffer diseases related to cyanide intoxication via oral and dermal contact respectively. For chronic exposure to River Bogo Downstream by resident adults, the non-cancer health risks are: 0.031 and 0.57 via oral and dermal contact for CTE parameters respectively, which also means that, the non-cancer health risks associated with cyanide intoxication is negligible as the hazard index is less than 1.0 via oral and dermal contacts respectively. The results showed that health risk for acute exposure to cyanide by the resident adults is very high. Hence the residents attribute most of the unexplained deaths in the communities to accidental ingestion and dermal contact of cyanide water

Source: UCC
Non-Custodial Sentence as an Alternative to Imprisonment in Ghana

The increase in prison populations around the world and its enormous financial burdens on governments, health risk on prisoners and overcrowding of prisons has warranted the need to explore non-custodial sentence. This study‟s main objective was to explore non-custodial sentence as an alternative to imprisonment in Ghana, with the study area being the Cape Coast Metropolitan Assembly. The study used the theories of punishment. The mixed method research approach was used. The study used multi stage cluster sampling and the random sampling to collect data from 382 residents in the Metropolitan Area and purposive sample to collect data from 25 members of the criminal justice system. With pragmatism as the research philosophy, questionnaires and interviews were used to elicit data for the study. The study revealed that majority of the residents in Cape Coast were aware of non-custodial sentence and could describe how it works. Also it was found that the current forms of non-custodial sentence in Ghana are not enough. It is recommended that parliament should pass the non-custodial bill into a law allowing other forms of non-custodial sentence to be practiced in Ghana. It is also recommended non-custodial sentence must be clearly defined for members of the criminal justice system since the concept is given varied meanings about what constitute a minor offence and how non-custodial sentence may deal with such repeated offences.

Source: UCC
Non-custodial sentencing and reduction of overcrowding in Ghana prisons: Case study of Nsawam male prisons

This research focused on investigating issues related to non-custodial sentencing and reduction of overcrowding in Ghana prison. The study was limited to male prison inmates at the Nsawam prisons. Specifically, the study examined the nature of non-custodial sentencing, decongestion mechanisms and the well-being of prisoners. The study adopted a qualitative study approach using interview as a data collection tool. The study focused on using sixteen (16) prison inmates and four (4) prison officers to explore these objectives; adoption of non-custodial sentencing, decongestion mechanism and well-being of prison inmates. The exploration dwelt on the use of non-custodial sentencing in Ghana which is unattended to hence, the criminal justice system needs to be amended by introducing non-custodial sentencing. Also, there was no defined procedure for decongestion activities at the prison. Again, the wellbeing of prison inmates was identified to be in a deplorable state. Health, food and mental instability were significant issues related to the well-being of prison inmates. The study recommended the enactment of the non-custodial laws as well as initiating a long-term decongestion of prison facilities including Inmates’ food program was featured to ensure that diet/food is balanced enough to keep them healthy.

Source: UCC