ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Optimal Advert Placement Slot Using Knapsack Model: A Case Study: Television Advertisement of TV 3

The study was about how to model the TV 3 adverts selection problems as 0 – 1 single knapsack problem so as to maximize the returns from their commercials. Knapsack problem model is a general resource allocation model in which a single resource is assigned to a number of alternatives with the aim of maximizing the total return. In this work, the researcher obtained the data on TV 3 adverts from the following zones: A1: TV 3 News 360 (19:00 hours GMT), A4: Music – Music (20 : 30 – 21:30 GMT ) every Saturday. A9: Mid Day Live (12 : 00 – 12 : 30 GMT ) Dynamic programming algorithm was used to solve the problem. To carry out the computations, the computer software, matlab was used to analyse the problem. The computational results showed that the optimal incomes of adverts from TV 3 News 360, Music – Music and Mid – Day Live programmes are Gh ¢30,005.00, Gh ¢15,696.00 and Gh ¢ 4,675.20 respective.

Source: KNUST
Optimal Allocation of Funds, the Loan Portfolio: (a case study of Christian Community Microfinance Limited (Ccml))

Many Ghanaians both in the informal and the formal sectors take loans for various reasons some for their wards education or being investment in their businesses. Others also take loans to acquire personal properties such as houses and cars. Most people go to the financial institutions for Loans. Due to poor allocation of funds by most financial institutions to prospective loan seekers the institutions are not able to maximize their profits. In view of this monies that can be used for social services in the community in which they operate go into bad debt. The main objective of this study is to develop Linear Programming model to help Christian Community Microfinance Limited (CCML), Eastern Zone, to allocate their funds to prospective loan seekers in order for them to maximize their profits. The problem was modeled as a linear programming problem. Simplex algorithm was used to solve the problem. It was observed that, if CCML Eastern zone, disbursed a total of GH¢120,000.00 a profit of GH¢32,068.48 will be realized.

Source: KNUST
Optimal advertising management, case study, S.T.B McCann, Accra

The Knapsack problem model is a general resource allocation model in which a single resource is assigned to a number of alternatives with the objective of maximizing the total return. In this study, we applied the knapsack problem model to the placement of advert slots in the media. The aim was to optimize the capital allocated for advert placements. Our study focus on the use of a simple heuristic algorithm, developed by Amponsah and Darkwah (2009) for the solution of the knapsack problem. The algorithm was coded in Fortran 90. A walk through the algorithm with our model gave the computational iterative values for the various optimal values for the various optimal solutions. The software displayed the final optimal solution for the problem. This gave an optimal reach of one hundred and fifty three thousand people at the cost of ninety seven cedis as against one hundred and fifty two thousand people at the cost of ninety eight cedis from the crude method used by the company. In the study it was observed that computer applications in computation gives a systematic and transparent solution as compared to the arbitrary method and also management will benefit from the proposed approach for placement and selection of advert to guarantee optimal reach of people.

Source: KNUST
An optimal assignment/placement of customers to bus services from Kumasi to Accra

This project involves the use of optimisation techniques, specifically the Assignment Model which is a variant of the Transportation model to optimally assign available bus services to different time schedules in any clay of the week. Average service times or Holding times with respect to the various parallel Servers (bus services) at a given time schedules are taken and analysed. These time averages provide a measure of the cost effectiveness or ne Assignment Tableau which has, as it resource the parallel servers and the time schedules as it operating pattern. The Hungarian Algorithm is used to optimally assign to each time schedule a server with a corresponding minimum holding time. For this service system a high server capacity is achieved by placing several medium capacity single channel servers iii parallel. A customer arrival stream is split into component streams with each stream being served by one server. The K11’ server serves its component process independent of the other as a single channel server with a first-come-first-served Service discipline. The inter arrival times of buses are also taken and analysed. With these parameters the respective probabilities that there would be idle servers at the various service points are calculated using the Poisson distribution. The results show that the STC Bus service has a minimum Service time between the hours of 4am — 8am throughout the week except on Sundays. The GPRTU Neoplan Bus was also observed to have the same trend between the hours of 8am - 11am. Additionally, there were idle servers at the GPRTU terminal almost invariably unlike the STC buses which arrive only within the hours to load and consequently depart for their respective destinations.

Source: KNUST
Optimal allocation of resources case study Sene District Assembly, Brong Ahafo Region of Ghana.

In this thesis, optimization is used to optimally allocate and assign projects funded by the forty- nine percent (49%) discretionary allocation of District Assembly Common Fund (DACF) using the Hungarian assignment problem and factor- rating method. The research seeks to evenly allocate and optimally assign resources to the four traditional councils constituting Sene District. On the remaining fifty- one percent (51%) mandatory allocation of District Assembly Common Fund (DACF), the thesis revealed its optimal utilization as spelt out in the guidelines of its disbursement.

Source: KNUST
Optimal Campaign Visitation of Presidential Aspirants Case Study: Ashanti Region of Ghana

The campaign to be flag bearers for political parties for presidential election leave campaign teams wondering how to travel to all the constituencies and plan such visits with minimum cost Most of the cost incurred is by way of transportation and minimizing the distances covered in such trips goes a long way to bring down cost, since transportation costs depend on distances traveled. In this research the itinerary of the aspirant was tackled as a Traveling Salesman ¥ Problem (TSP) with simulated annealing (SA) used to find the global minimum of the of the distances traveled. The Ashanti Region of Ghana with thirty nine constituencies was used as a case study for the research. The relevant literature was reviewed. In the development of the algorithm, real road lengths were used instead of the norm-1 distances which are widely accepted for the solution of the TSP using SA. This was because in the real world situation, the norm-1 is of little use since most of the* campaign travels are done by road and not by air or other means. A heuristic algorithm, based on a matrix of distances connecting these constituencies, was developed and used successfully to find the optimal traveling distance for the thirty nine constituencies in the Ashanti Region of Ghana and the optimal distance found to be 818.6km. This optimal solution was obtained after a number of iterations, which lasted 1200 sec on the average when using a Hewlett Packard laptop with a 2.00GB processor Recommendations were given for the research to be extended to the two hundred and thirty constituencies across the country and for the inclusion of some constraints as road class and river bodies.

Source: KNUST
Optimal Campaign Visitation of Presidential Aspirants Case Study: Brong Ahafo Region of Ghana

This research presents a solution to the problem of a presidential candidate having to visit all the twenty four constituency capitals in the Brong Ahafo Region campaigning. This problem is formulated as a travelling salesman problem (TSP). TSP involves finding an optimal route for visiting cities and returning to the point of origin. The formulation of the TSP in this work is based on symmetric TSP. This research presents the solution based on Simulated Annealing (SA) method. A Matlab code for the TSP algorithm was used to solve the problem of a presidential candidate visiting all the twenty four constituency capitals in the Brong Ahafo Region campaigning. The result obtained in the study showed that the optimal route that can be considered is Sunyani Domase Duayaw Nkwanta Bechem Hwediem Kenyase Kukuom Goaso Wamfie Dormaa-Ahenkro Berekum Drobo Sampa Nsokor Wenchi Techiman Nkoranza Busuaa Kwame Danso Atebubu Jema Tuobodom Sunyani and 980km would be covered.

Source: KNUST
Optimal connection of gas pipelines from Tema to all regional capitals of Ghana (an application of prim’s algorithm)

In 2007, Ghana found oil in commercial quantities and a major by-product of it’s exploration is natural gas. The WAGP Company has also laid pipelines from Nigeria through Togo and Benin to Tema and Takoradi in Ghana to meet the country’s natural gas needs. There is therefore the need to establish an elaborate and extensive transportation system to efficiently and effectively move natural gas from producing regions to consumption regions. Natural gas transportation requires a continuous pipeline network from well-head to burner- tip. Until Ghana builds a national gas pipeline network, introduction of natural gas into the economy will not necessarily displace all fuel-oil demand. On the basis of its mandate in the natural gas sector as the developer and operator of the natural gas transmission system in Ghana, the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company Limited intends to develop a nationwide network of natural gas transmission pipelines and regulatory metering stations in accordance with the proposed Natural Gas transmission master plan. This research therefore analyses Network Analysis Techniques to the pipeline design problem. The main objective of study is to determine an optimal natural gas pipeline connection route to distribute natural gas throughout the entire nation by extending pipeline lines from the receiving point at Tema and using the regional capitals as nodes. Data on National Grid Co-ordinates was collected and analysed. Euclidean distance formula was used to compute the distances between all pairs of node. Concept of minimal Spanning tree using Prim’s algorithm is used in an analytical algorithm for generating near-optimal pipeline networks. An optimal pipeline length of 382.73km was obtained.

Source: KNUST
Optimal Campaign Visitation of Presidential Aspirants case study: Central Region of Ghana.

All over the world, political parties are seen as vital institutions for contemporary democratic dispensation and they play a vital role in the democratic process. Finance is regarded as the most essential resource for political parties (van Biezen, 2003). Yet for too long, commitment to financing of political parties in Ghana has remained rhetoric hence the need to minimize cost. This research work provides a solution to the problem of presidential aspirants having to tour all the twenty-three (23) constituency capitals in the Central Region of Ghana campaigning. Most of the cost incurred by presidential candidates as they visit all the constituency capitals in Central Region is as a result of transportation and minimizing the distances covered in such trips goes a long way to minimize cost, since transportation costs depend on distances traveled. This problem is formulated as a Travelling Salesman Problem (TSP). TSP involves finding an optimal route for visiting cities and returning to the point of origin. In the development of the algorithm, real road lengths were used instead of the norm-1 distances which are widely accepted for the solution of the TSP using Simulated Annealing. The formulation of the TSP in this work is based on Symmetric TSP. This research work presents the solution based on Simulated Annealing (SA) method. A Mat lab code for the TSP algorithm was used to solve the problem of a presidential aspirant visiting all the twenty-three (23) constituency capitals in the Central Region of Ghana campaigning. The result obtained in the study showed that the optimal route that can be considered is Elmina Essarkyir Apam Winneba Potsin Awutu Breku Kasoa Agona Swedru Agona Nsaba Afransi Asikuma Ajumako Saltpond Assin Foso Dunkwa-on-Offin Diaso Twifo Praso Jukwa Assin Breku Nsuaem Kyekyewere Abura Dunkwa Abura(Cape Coast) Old Hospital Hill(Cape Coast) Elmina with a total distance of 786km.

Source: KNUST
Optimal Allocation of Hospital Beds - A Mathematical Programming Approach (Case Study of Public Hospital in Ghana)

This thesis provides application of a queuing theory and goal programming combination model to aid in the reallocation of beds in a public hospital in Ghana. The adoption of queuing theory and goal programming gives us a clear objective or target of this study. The queuing theory was able to determine the optimal number of beds required in each department or wards and successfully ensured that no patient is turned away from the wards and no loss of income generation to the hospital. Outcome from queuing theory are used to construct a multiobjective decision aiding model within goal programming framework. The model was tested with one year [January - December, 2010] data collected from a public hospital in Ghana.

Source: KNUST
Optimal control and comprehensive cost-effectiveness analysis for COVID-19

Cost-effectiveness analysis is a mode of determining both the cost and economic health outcomes of one or more control interventions. In this work, we have formulated a non-autonomous nonlinear deterministic model to study the control of COVID-19 to unravel the cost and economic health outcomes for the autonomous nonlinear model proposed for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We calculated the strength number and noticed the strength number is less than zero, meaning the proposed model does not capture multiple waves, hence to capture multiple wave new compartmental model may require for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We proposed an optimal control problem based on a previously studied model and proved the existence of the proposed optimal control model. The optimality system associated with the non-autonomous epidemic model is derived using Pontryagin’s maximum principle. The optimal control model captures four time-dependent control functions, thus, 𝑢1-practising physical or social distancing protocols; 𝑢2-practising personal hygiene by cleaning contaminated surfaces with alcohol-based detergents; 𝑢3-practising proper and safety measures by exposed, asymptomatic and symptomatic infected individuals; 𝑢4-fumigating schools in all levels of education, sports facilities, commercial areas and religious worship centres. We have performed numerical simulations to investigate extensive cost-effectiveness analysis for fourteen optimal control strategies. Comparing the control strategies, we noticed that; Strategy 1 (practising physical or social distancing protocols) is the most costsaving and most effective control intervention in Saudi Arabia in the absence of vaccination. But, in terms of the infection averted, we saw that strategy 6, strategy 11, strategy 12, and strategy 14 are just as good in controlling COVID-19.

Source: KNUST
An Optimal Control Model of the Adsorption Process of a Metallurgical Plant: A Case Study of Gold

The model developed is an optimal control model of the adsorption process of a hydrometallurgical process called Carbon-In-Pulp. The model took into consideration the fact that the metallurgical process encounters several losses chief among them being gold solution losses. Several assumptions were made and among them was the assumption that the amount of gold in solution that goes to waste is equal to the amount of gold solution in the adsorption unit less the amount of gold adsorbed unto the activated carbon phase. With the rate of adsorption proportional to the capacity of activated carbon and the concentration of gold on the carbon phase, the model has a state variable x(t) which is the concentration of gold in the solution phase at any given time and a control variable u(t) which is the concentration of gold on the activated carbon phase at any given time. The optimal control model developed gives complete overview of the process of adsorption process of dissolved gold solution unto activated carbon. The model reveals that the process is fast and spontaneous initially and slows down with time until it reaches the carrying capacity of the activated carbon where the reverse process is observed. Activated carbons with high capacities (i.e. activated carbon that is believed to be fresh and therefore has not been fouled) have the ability to absorb gold faster. The model reveals that the rate at which gold is lost from the solution phase is the same but a reverse process to the rate at which it is adsorbed unto the activated carbon phase and this rate, as mentioned earlier, is dependent on the maximum capacity of the activated carbon. It has also been observed that the choice of concentration of activated carbon affects greatly the nature of adsorption. The rate at which gold is adsorbed unto activated carbon reduces with time but the process is quicker and very spontaneous with increased amount of activated carbon in the adsorption circuit.

Source: KNUST
Optimal Control of Mutual Fund Portfolio Choice in the Presence of Dynamic Flow with Partial Information

We study the utility maximization problem of an economic agent who maximizes the expected utility of the terminal value of his wealth resulting from an investment in a mutual fund and a risk-less asset over a finite time interval in a financial market with partial information. We use continuous-time ordinary differential equation and stochastic differential equation to model security prices. The novelty of this work is that we restrict the assumption that market participants can observe the drift vector process used in the specification of stochastic differential equation for the asset prices. Kalman-Bucy filtering method is used to estimate the drift vector process. Stochastic control theory and dynamic programming methods were used to address the maximization problem. The main results are the explicit representation of the optimal trading strategies and value functional for the economic agent and the fund manager for three different utility functions: namely, the log, power and negative exponential. The optimal trading strategies of the economic agent are independent of wealth level except for the negative exponential utility function whose optimal trading strategy is a decreasing function of wealth. They inversely related to the fee rate for all the utility functions. Optimal trading strategies for the fund manager are also autonomous of wealth level, but directly correlated to the fee rate charged. The accumulated fee process of the mutual fund is autonomous of the fee rate charged and directly related to wealth level (except for the negative exponential utility function where it is independent of wealth). We found that the product of the economic agent’s optimal trading strategy and the fund manager’s optimal trading strategy results in the optimal trading strategy that the economic agent would have selected if he had been allowed to trade freely in the risky securities.

Source: KNUST
Optimal control and cost‑effectiveness analysis for a tuberculosis vaccination model with two latent classes

Tuberculosis (TB) persists as a significant public health challenge in many regions, including Ghana. Effective treatment strategies are crucial in controlling the spread of TB, particularly in populations with diverse characteristics. This study delves into designing an optimal treatment strategy for the TB vaccination model, considering two latent classes based on Ghanaian data. We estimate and analyze the parameters to study TB dynamics based on the reproduction numbers of the two latent classes. We look into how sensitive the parameters are to see the transmission dynamics of the slow latent class of TB infectious with drug-sensitive strains and the rapid latent class of TB infectious with drug-resistant strains. Using optimal control theory techniques, we devise an optimal control strategy with a cost–benefit analysis to minimize TB incidence and maximize vaccination coverage within budget constraints. This strategy aims to guide policymakers in allocating resources efficiently to control the spread of TB. The results of this work give in-depth knowledge about the dominance of the two strains of TB transmission and provide insights into the design of effective vaccination and treatment programs. By tailoring interventions to the population's specific needs, we can work towards reducing the burden of TB worldwide.

Source: KNUST
Optimal domestic energy mix- a case study of the Kumasi Metropolis

Background— Many homes make use of different energy sources without taking into an account the cost involve and the health hazards they might have on the people especially children. The study sought to investigate into Optional Domestic Energy Sources mix in the Kumasi Metropolis in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. Aim - The aim was to construct a mathematical model for the determination of an optimal domestic energy mix in Kumasi Metropolis and also to analyze the solution of the model in the light of safety, environmental and socio -economic issues. Method- In all, two hundred (200) respondents were used for a preliminary survey and secondary data on the unit cost of the energy sources and ratings of energy consuming domestic devices was collected from the Mechanical Engineering Department, KNUST. Excel Solver was used to solve the optimal domestic energy problem formulated as a Transportation Problem of linear programming. Results- The model came out with a certain mix of energy and this was the rational choice for the consumer. The study revealed that an amount GH¢90.10, GH¢45.015and GH¢22.713 would be spent monthly in the home by the high, middle and low income groups respectively. It also revealed that, solar energy (which is not widely utilized by people) could be economically be combined with other common domestic energy sources except the Generator which the model indicated as not being cost effective for any activity. Conclusions- Among the recommendations offered was that since the market economy tends to compel people to use those sources of energy which are not good for the environment, the government of Ghana could come out with policy which would subsidize PV panels so that more people can make use of the solar energy in their homes. Again, charcoal makers should be made to pay tax to be used for improving the environment directly through forestation programmes. LPG should also be made affordable and accessible in the communities through the application of appropriate incentives.

Source: KNUST