ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Local Participation in Community Based Development Projects in Ghana

The study critically analyses how the local people in Ga West municipality perceive local participation and socio-cultural factorsthat influence local participation. The study used the mixed method design. The lottery method of the simple random sampling technique coupled with Neuman and Neuman’s recommendation on random convenience sampling were used to sample and collect data from 187 respondents. The study revealed that local participation providesthe local people employment avenues. It wasrevealed that developmental projects brought to their communities do not allow the local people to be involved at the planning and implementation phases. The study further revealed that women were of the opinion that projects brought to them were not feminine enough and did not build their capacity. Education,social cohesion, peace, and stability were among some of the sociocultural factors that influence participation. The study again recommended that every community member should participate, regardless of their gender, ethnic group, or socio-cultural differences.

Source: UG
Local participation, institutions and land acquisition for energy infrastructure: The case of the Atuabo gas project in Ghana

This paper examines the impacts of land acquisition for a gas processing plant at Atuabo on the livelihood of affected farmers. The paper explores the extent to which affected farmers participated in the determination of compensation paid out to them and whether and how the compensation package adequately caters for the lost livelihoods. Using the livelihood approach as a guiding theoretical tool and data produced through interviews, observation, cases studies, and informal discussions, the study found that farmers’ involvement in the compensation process did not go beyond identification and measurement of their farms. With limited participation in the acquisition and compensation process, the farmers felt deprived of their entitlements and viewed the compensation as inadequate for their lost livelihoods and generational inheritance. It is recommended that the government actively engage with community members and traditional authorities to ensure that farmers are allocated new parcels of land for cultivation. © 2018 Elsevier Ltd

Source: UG
Local participation, institutions and land acquisition for energy infrastructure: The case of the Atuabo gas project in Ghana

This paper examines the impacts of land acquisition for a gas processing plant at Atuabo on the livelihood of affected farmers. The paper explores the extent to which affected farmers participated in the determination of compensation paid out to them and whether and how the compensation package adequately caters for the lost livelihoods. Using the livelihood approach as a guiding theoretical tool and data produced through interviews, observation, cases studies, and informal discussions, the study found that farmers' involvement in the com pensation process did not go beyond identification and measurement of their farms. With limited participation in the acquisition and compensation process, the farmers felt deprived of their entitlements and viewed the compensation as inadequate for their lost livelihoods and generational inheritance. It is recommended that the government actively engage with community members and traditional authorities to ensure that farmers are allocated new parcels of land for cultivation

Source: UG
Local Perspectives On Human Rights Abuses Within Ghana’s Extractive Industries.

This paper uses local communities’ experiences and perceptions of human rights violations to examine the United Nation’s (UN’s) "Protect, Respect and Remedy"(PRR) Framework for Business and Human Rights in Ghana’s extractive industries. Through a combination of semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions with key actors, the research reveals that awareness of the PRR framework in local communities is low, and the extent to which the framework has resulted in better human rights outcomes for community members in extractive sites remains limited. By presenting empirical evidence of human rights violations in both the oil and gas, and the mining communities in Ghana’s Western region, the study underscores the urgent need for a comprehensive action to address systemic challenges driving human rights violations, and the need to safeguard the rights and well-being of vulnerable populations affected by natural resources extraction. The article concludes by consid ering the theoretical and policy implications of its findings and proposes possible strategies to limit human rights abuses within the extractive industries in developing countries.

Source: UG
The Local Study of Obomeng.

Obomeng is one of the group of towns forming the Kwahu district, a plateau- land, bounded on the East by the River Volta, on the West by the town of Kwahu Praso, on the North by River Obosum, on the South by the town of Jejeti. This short local studies of Obomeng, therefore is intended to help the teacher to see the relationship of geographical and historical factors to the different aspect of life of the community.

Source: UG
A local study of Winneba

Winneba, situated between 50 19" and 5023" of North Latitude and from 0 035" and 004ltl of west Longitude, lies on the coastline, which consists generally of a low sandy foreshore, interspersed with shaggy rocks, on which the Atlantic swell beats unceasingly. Such a thing as an absolutely calm day is practically unknown; and usually a misty spray from the breaking surf floats on the water edge over the masses of scrub bordering the beach.

Source: UG
Local Survey of Achimota School and Village

In this survey of the two Achimotas - the School and the Village - each community will be examined separately and then compared one with the other. The Village was the first to be established. According to tradition it came into being some - time in the nineteenth century. The school came into existence in the first quarter of the twentieth century, in 1925. - The school owes its origin and continued existence to education. Those who live there are students, teachers, administrators and several types of .workers. It has a mixed population of White and black, young and old. A large number of these who because of their occupation or career, cannot be permanent settlers, leave the school at one time another.

Source: UG
Local Voices in the Scholarly Discourse on Art Studies in Kenya: A Postcolonial Enigma.

This article investigates the state of art studies in Kenya, the reasons accounting for its situation, and perspectives of Kenyan scholars on such studies. It posits that the arts of Africa are studied from diverse perspectives, usually involving several disciplines: art history, anthropology, history, language, literature, philosophy, religion and studio/practical art. The research indicates that the key reasons that contribute to the present situation are the colonial educational policy, the absence of art studies in tertiary institutions in combination with a focus on the creative economy, and the commercialization of art through market forces. These delimit tuition to practical/studio art. Thus, at university level, Black African participation in scholarly discourse on Kenyan art is minimal. This article recommends the introduction of art studies with new methodologies that could bring fresh perspectives and insights into the complexity and interconnectedness of African cultures.

Source: UG
Localising and Sustaining Poverty Reduction: Experiences from Ghana’ Management of Environmental Quality

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to examine poverty and poverty reduction at the local level using the Hohoe Municipality and Sefwi‐Wiaso District, both in Ghana, as a case. Design/methodology/approach – The paper adopts a survey method, collecting data from 180 farmers on the various aspects of the topic to form the basis of the study. Questionnaires and focus group discussions were used as the data collection instruments. Findings – The study found that, although many poverty reduction initiatives have been undertaken in Ghana, their impact on the poor farming communities has been very minimal. The failure of these poverty reduction policies could be attributed to the non‐involvement of local people in the process of policy formation. It also revealed that the number of poor people and the degree of poverty might be higher than the details captured by official statistics and publications. Research limitations/implications – The paper is biased towards farmers. It did not consider other sectors of the Ghanaian population. Practical implications – Poverty reduction programmes to be developed and implemented in the future must be designed using bottom‐up approaches and must factor the rural farmer into the equation since the agriculture sector is still the largest employer in Ghana. Originality/value – The paper discusses poverty and how it can be reduced, relying on what the victims of poverty consider as the main causes of poverty and how its reduction can be achieved.

Source: UG
'Locally acquired foreign accent' (LAFA) in contemporary Ghana

The term 'LAFA' stands for 'locally acquired foreign accent' and refers to a style of speech popularly known in Ghana as 'slurring'. It emerged in the 1990s, as a mainly phonological approximation to American speech, among young Ghanaians who may have never been to the US. The 'target' variety for English in the Ghanaian education system remains, as a colonial legacy, officially although not always in practice, British English. This paper reports a small-scale study of often ambivalent attitudes towards LAFA, among tertiary level students, and as observed on public websites. The analysis situates LAFA within a theoretical framework of identity construction through linguistic choices. By using LAFA, speakers bid for membership of an imagined global community. However, they also flout essentialised expectations of their speech, apparently rejecting aspects of their linguistic repertoire acquired in earlier life. The benefits LAFA users aspire to are thus accompanied by some risk of social rejection and accusations of fakery. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Source: UG
Locally advanced breast cancer (LABC)

Locally advanced breast (LABC) consists of inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) and non-IBC locally advanced breast cancer (non-IBC LABC).Although the diagnostic work-ups and management are similar, there are subtle differences in terms of biology and surgical management. Some of the topics in this chapter overlapped those in the early breast cancer chapter, Chap. 4. Therefore, readers are encouraged to review the early breast cancer chapter in order to have a more comprehensive understanding of managing patients with LABC © Springer Science+Business Media New York 2015.

Source: UG
Locally processed roasted-maize based weaning foods Fortified with legumes: factors affecting their availability and competitiveness in Accra, Ghana

Tom Brown (roasted-maize porridge) is one of the traditional weaning foods in Ghana. As an effort by the Ministry of Health to enhance the nutrient content of this low nutrient- density weaning food, a product called weanimix, which is Tom Brown fortified with legumes (cowpeas or soybeans and groundnuts), was introduced more than two decades ago. Cowpeas are an indigenous African legume, popularly used by Ghanaians for various traditional dishes. While soybeans are not traditionally used, they can easily be incorporated into local diets. Commercial weanimix-type products in ready-to-cook flour form are currently available mainly at supermarkets, which target higher-income consumers. This paper examined: (1) the competitiveness between cowpeas and soybeans as an ingredient in weanimix; and (2) constraints to making weanimix more widely available to lower-income families. Local food processors, weaning mothers, commercial custom millers, and retailers were interviewed for both qualitative and quantitative data. Secondary price data were collected from different sources including the Ministry of Food and Agriculture. Descriptive analysis was carried out to address non-price factors of the issues, and enterprise budgeting and sensitivity analyses were conducted to address price factors. The study found that the higher price of cowpeas, compared to soybeans, is a minor factor in local processors’ choice between cowpeas and soybeans. Rather, the current overwhelmingly popular use of soybeans in the weanimix-type products among the respondents was attributed to non-price factors such as the perception that soybeans are more nutritious. A main reason for the lack of availability of weanimix for mothers from lower-income families appeared to be low awareness of the product among consumers. The results of sensitivity analysis showed that typical differences in prices currently observed between weanimix-type products and Tom Brown seems to be larger than the difference in the cost of production between these products. It was also shown that the level of processing and retail margins greatly affect the retail prices of weanimix. Weanimix could be made more available to lower-income consumers if local companies expanded their outlet for the product from supermarkets to small shops or if grain and flour-type product vendors in the local markets (who currently prepare and sell Tom Brown) produced and sold weanimix. However, actions would need to be taken to help assure consumers of the quality of the product sold through market vendors.

Source: UG
Location, biophysical and agronomic parameters for croplands in northern Ghana

Smallholder agriculture is the bedrock of the food production system in sub-Saharan Africa. Yields in Africa are significantly below potentially attainable yields for a number of reasons, and they are particularly vulnerable to climate change impacts. Monitoring of these highly heterogeneous landscapes is needed to respond to farmer needs, develop an appropriate policy and ensure food security, and Earth observation (EO) must be part of these efforts, but there is a lack of ground data for developing and testing EO methods in western Africa, and in this paper, we present data on (i) crop locations, (ii) biophysical parameters and (iii) crop yield, and biomass was collected in 2020 and 2021 in Ghana and is reported in this paper. In 2020, crop type was surveyed in more than 1800 fields in three different agroecological zones across Ghana (the Guinea Savannah, Transition and Deciduous zones). In 2021, a smaller number of fields were surveyed in the Guinea Savannah zone, and additionally, repeated measurements of leaf area index (LAI) and leaf chlorophyll concentration were made on a set of 56 maize fields. Yield and biomass were also sampled at harvesting. LAI in the sampled fields ranged from 0.1 to 5.24 m2 m−2 , whereas leaf chlorophyll concentration varied between 6.1 and 60.3 µg cm−2 . Yield varied between 190 and 4580 kg ha−1 , with an important within-field variability (average per-field standard deviation 381 kg ha−1 ). The data are used in this paper to (i) evaluate the Digital Earth Africa 2019 cropland masks, where 61 % of sampled 2020/21 cropland is flagged as cropland by the data set, (ii) develop and test an LAI retrieval method from Earth observation Planet surface reflectance data (validation correlation coefficient R = 0.49, root mean square error (RMSE) 0.44 m2 m−2 ), (iii) create a maize classification data set for Ghana for 2021 (overall accuracy within the region tested: 0.84), and (iv) explore the relationship between maximum LAI and crop yield using a linear model (correlation coefficient R = 0.66 and R = 0.53 for in situ and Planet-derived LAI, respectively). The data set, made available here within the context of the Group on Earth Observations Global Agricultural Monitoring (GEOGLAM) initiative, is an important contribution to understanding crop evolution and distribution in smallholder farming systems and will be useful for researchers developing/validating methods to monitor these systems using Earth observation data. The data described in this paper are available from https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6632083 (Gomez-Dans et al., 2022).

Source: UG
Lockdown Measures in Response to COVID-19 in Nine Sub-Saharan African Countries

The Bacteriology Department aims to improve the quality of life first for Ghanaians and the world at large by conducting research into bacterial diseases of public health importance to Ghana and globally. In addition to working on enteric pathogens and sexually transmitted diseases, the department’s current main focus is on the two most important mycobacterial diseases of public health importance to Ghana, namely Buruli ulcer (BU) and tuberculosis (TB).

Source: UG
Locus of control and anti-hypertensive medication adherence in Ghana

INTRODUCTION: Medication non-adherence is a major public health problem in Ghana. Locus of control (LoC) may influence adherence to medication. In this study we examine the association between locus orientation and adherence to hypertensive medication among adult patients. We also take into account the role of medication side effects.METHODS: We conducted a hospital-based cross-sectional study involving two tertiary hospitals in southern and northern Ghana. Data were collected from 400 hypertensive patients using a structured questionnaire. We gathered information on patient's sociodemographic characteristics, health LoC, side effects of anti-hypertensive medication and adherence to anti-hypertensive medication.RESULTS: Participants exhibited features of mixed LoC (both internal and external) usually referred to as bi-local expectancy. However, orientation was skewed towards external LoC. Females were marginally more likely than males to have an internal LoC. Education was associated with a greater likelihood of internal LoC. While most patients (93.3%) poorly adhered to antihypertensive medications, logistic regression model revealed that non-adherence was significantly associated with low internal LoC, medication side effects and the combined effect of medication side effects and external LoC.CONCLUSION: Medication non-adherence, experiences of medication side effects and LoC are associated. Multifaceted intervention programmes highlighting personality characteristics like LoC may improve anti-hypertensive medication adherence.

Source: UG
The Logical Limits to Misunderstanding

A widely shared mistake about human experience is that it is irredeemably gender-specific, in the sense that there are things only women, or only men, can understand. As will be shown in brief measure, this is logically unsustainable. One cannot intelligibly both insist there exists a strict dichotomy between gender viewpoints and maintain there is no way to conceive of a gender viewpoint other than one’s own. Further, society at large is disadvantaged by invalidating women’s experience and their voice as a source of authority through the fiction that women’s sensibilities and intuitions are inherently beyond men’s capacity to appreciate.

Source: UG
Long Run Determinants of Stock Market Development in Ghana

The paper investigates how macro-economic factors affect Stock Market development in Ghana using the Johansen’s co-integration procedure. Quarterly data from 1991 to 2004 was used and the paper made very useful observations. First, the paper finds that gross domestic savings causes stock market development. A related finding is that real income, gross domestic savings, domestic credit to the private sector, and exchange rate predict the long run development of the Ghana Stock Exchange. However, Treasury bill rates have negative impact on the long run development of the GSE. Contrary to expectation, inflation did not prove to be a significant factor in predicting the long run development of the stock market.

Source: UG
Long term testicular ischemia-reperfusion injury-induced apoptosis: Involvement of survivin down-regulation

Testicular torsion is associated with damage to the testicular tissue as a result of ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) and induction of apoptosis leading to progressive damage to spermatogenesis. Survivin is suggested to be an important regulator in the control of the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway, although its role in torsion-induced IRI is unknown. Therefore, we sought to evaluate testicular survivin expression after long term IRI induced by testicular torsion. Survivin expression was measured by real-time PCR in 6-12 month old New Zealand white rabbits divided into three groups (4 animals/group): group (A) sham control, group (B) ischemia alone for 60 min and group (C) ischemia for 60 min followed by reperfusion for 6 months. Germ cell apoptosis was evaluated by TUNEL assay, Bax/Bcl-2 ratio and DNA fragmentation. The Johnsen score was used to assess testicular morphological damage, while lipid peroxidation was used as an indicator for oxidative stress. Survivin expression was detected in all testicular tissue samples. The rate of survivin expression after IRI was significantly higher (p < 0.05) compared with ischemic only and sham control testes. Its expression in IRI samples was inversely correlated with the significant increase (p < 0.05) in apoptosis, oxidative levels and spermatogenic damage. In conclusion, down-regulation of testicular survivin expression after long term IRI to the testis and its association with apoptosis induction suggests its involvement in the regulation of this apoptotic pathway. These findings also identify survivin as a potential new target for the prevention of germ cell death during testicular torsion.

Source: UG
Long-term continuous administration of a hydro-ethanolic extract of Synedrella nodiflora (L) Gaertn in male Sprague-Dawley rats: Biochemical, haematological and histo-pathological changes

Background: Conflicting reports about the toxicity of Synedrella nodiflora (L) Gaertn (family Asteraceae), a plant traditionally used in Ghana for the management of epilepsy, abound in literature. The present study evaluates the effect of a 90-day continuous oral administration of a hydro-ethanolic whole plant extract of Synedrella nodiflora (SNE) in male Sprague-Dawley rats. Methods: The toxicological evaluation of the extract (100, 300 and 1000 mgkg-1) was focused on haematological, serum biochemical parameters and histopathological changes of some isolated organs. Results: The extract produced no mortality in the rats treated during the study period. Only SNE 100 mgkg-1 produced significant decrease in white blood cell and neutrophil counts and an increase in albumin, globulin, total bilirubin, total protein and potassium levels. The higher doses (SNE 300 and 1000 mgkg-1) had no significant effect on all the haematological and biochemical parameters measured. Histopathological assessment of the liver, kidney and heart revealed no abnormalities in rats treated with the extracts. Only the SNE 1000 mgkg-1 produced distortions of the branching arrangements of the myocardial fibres and a congested vessel which indicates a healed infarction. Conclusions: The findings suggest hydro-ethanolic extract of Synedrella nodiflora (L) Gaertn generally has a low toxicity profile following a 90-day continuous oral administration in male Sprague-Dawley rats under the present laboratory conditions. However patients with renal or cardiac problems should use the plant with caution.

Source: UG