ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Assessing Content Validity of West African Senior School Certificate Examination Core Mathematics Questions

The study assessed the content validity of West African Senior School Certificate Examination core mathematics questions from 2009 to 2019. This document analysis type of research used Chief Examiner’s Report, Ghana Education Service syllabus, West African Examinations Council syllabus and data sheets as instruments. Analysis of the taxonomic spread of the questions was done in respect of the contents of Ghana Education Service syllabus. Seven hundred and seven core mathematics questions were classified against the cognitive levels as stated in the core mathematics syllabus. The questions were the main source of data. The results showed that the West African Senior School Certificate Examination core mathematics questions has content validity issues and a higher percentage of the questions emphasised more of lower levels of the cognitive domain. Based on the findings, recommendations were made to policy makers, West African Examinations Council and other stakeholders to address the issue of content validity and how to ensure a balance between higher and lower order domains. Particularly, the West African Examinations Council must take cognisance in reference to fairness in the spread of items over the number of content objectives and inclusion of questions outside the teaching syllabus. The issues with content validity of the core mathematics papers have serious implications especially where important decisions are made in terms of the soundness and interpretations of students’ results.

Source: UCC
Assessing contributions of non - governmental organisations to the education of street children in the Accra metropolis, Ghana

The phenomenon of streetism is becoming a growing concern in Africa and Ghana in particular. The urbanization and industrialization processes being undertaken have focused on the cities and towns to the exclusion of rural communities and settlements. Unfortunately however, this is rather compelling many children to abandon their education and relocate in city centres without deep concern and assessment of the consequences. This research therefore assesses the contributions of Non - Governmental Organizations to the education of street children in the Accra metropolis. It deals with commitment of NGOs to the plight of street children in the Accra metropolis. The study population was made up of NGOs working with street children in the study area. The NGOs were selected by purposive sampling because they satisfied all conditions therein to merit the selection. Secondly, subjects within the NGOs were picked by virtue of their position. Also, 100 rescued street children were interviewed from four NGOs. Data from these subjects were gathered by the researcher through a self-prepared questionnaire and interview schedule. Initially, 26 NGOs were identified and given copies of the questionnaire. However, only seven NGOs produced data relevant to the research topic. Based on the results of the data collected, it was found out that many of the street children being taken care of would have preferred formal education to practical skills training that the NGOs offered them. It is therefore the hope of this researcher that the appropriate steps would be taken to reverse the trend in order that full benefit of NGO programmes offered street children would be realised.

Source: UCC
Assessing counselling needs and services of hearing impaired students of the Cape Coast School for the Deaf

Counselling services delivered by a professional to hearing impaired individuals will help them solve their problems and deal with issues, disregarding their special disability problem.This study was undertaken to assess the counselling needs and counselling services provided for hearing impaired students. The study examined the knowledge students have about counselling, its services and its importance, the various counselling needs that hearing impaired students have and the nature and relevance of the counselling services rendered. The study was undertaken at the Cape Coast School for the Deaf. The research design was the descriptive survey design which is a type of qualitativeresearch design. The population of this study comprised the students at the JHS and vocational level and the staff of the Cape Coast School for the Deaf. A total of 103 students and 40 members of staff were sampled for the study. The simple random was employed to select the respondents. Two types of questionnaire were designed for students and members of staff. Descriptive statistics such as frequencies, percentages, means and standard deviations were used to analyse the data.The findings were that students had a fair knowledge of counselling but not the services since, the services provided to them lacked the appropriate skills and techniques, due to the absence of a professional counsellor in their school. It was revealed that one of the main tenets of counselling which is confidentiality was totally missing. The study recommended that educational policy makers, and heads of institutions should invest time and resources in training counsellors to help these individuals in making informed choices and decisions to solve problems they face.

Source: UCC
Assessing Customer Service Satisfaction and Its Implication for Service Delivery by the Electricity Company Of Ghana: A Case of the Obuasi Business Centre.

Good customers are an asset which, when well managed and served will return a handsome lifetime income stream for the company. The customer’s overall satisfaction with the services of the organization is a function of all the encounters/experiences of the customers with that organization. This research focused on the assessment of customer service satisfaction on the Electricity Company of Ghana and its implication for service delivery using Obuasi business centre. The study used the quantitative approach of the data collection. Questionnaires were designed for the targeted sample size. The primary and secondary data collection methods were used to gather data from different sources. The data was analysed using the predictive software Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 16.0. The findings of the study brought to the notice that, customer’s overall satisfaction with the services of the organization is a function of all the encounters/experiences of the customers with that organization. Among other things, the study recommended that to ensure improved customer service, regular monitoring and control is recommended across all ECG offices. This will ensure that staffs act according to company policies and procedures.

Source: UCC
Assessing Decent Work in the Informal Economy in Sunyani West District, Ghana.

The increasing growth of Ghana's informal economy with it related decent work deficit is of great concern. The study assessed decent work in the informal economy in Sunyani West District. Simple random sampling technique was used in selecting 360 participants from two categories of respondents (workers and employers) in the informal economy. Two (2) government officials at the district assembly and two (2) trade union representatives were purposively selected for in-depth interviewing. Mixed method design with descriptive survey design was employed. The population of the study comprised all wage workers in the Sunyani West district. Questionnaire was the instrument used to collect data. Descriptive statistics such as frequencies and percentages were used to analysed data. Additionally, document analysis was used as part of data analysis. The study revealed that many a time workers’ rights are infringe upon in that most informal wage workers are paid far below the minimum wage, dismissed without notice and compensation for the mere fact of working informally. The study indicated that most workers in the informal sector do not belong to any trade unions and as such did not enjoy the corresponding benefit. The few associated with trade unions indicated that trade unions often serve as their mouth piece in fighting for their interests. The study further enumerated a number of challenges confronting the achievement of decent work. Among these were maximization of profit by employers and low sales. Finally, the finding suggests that decent work results in reduction of poverty. It was therefore recommended that government and trade unions needs to implement appropriate measures to help reduce decent work deficits in the informal economy.

Source: UCC
Assessing dietary diversity of fathers in Mankessim in the Mfantseman Municipality

The evidence of nutritional problems in Ghana can be seen in the numerous Diet Related Non-Communicable Diseases in the Ghanaian population. Authors have deliberated on nutritional adequacies and the importance of supplying a varied diet. A lot has been done on single nutrient deficiencies, as well as child and maternal malnutrition. Women Dietary Diversity Projects have also been carried out in other parts of the world. In much the same way, we can study men’s diet and provide potential intervention strategies needed to improve their health. Thus, using the descriptive design mainly through questionnaire and interview, this study set out to assess dietary diversity of fathers and find out which factors influence dietary diversities of fathers. Two hundred and seventy-eight fathers in Mankessim were sampled using the multi-staged sampling technique. The study pointed out a low dietary diversity of fathers and their families as well as positive perception of fathers on the importance of dietary diversity. However the Families’ dietary diversity significantly contributed to fathers’ dietary diversity but not fathers’ perception. The money available, food prepared by wives or homemakers, appetite for food, available food at home, nutritional information in the media and fathers’ understanding of healthy diet, tend to influence the dietary diversity of fathers to a large extent. Fathers’ dietary needs are met by homemakers of fathers’ families, food vendors and fathers themselves. Nutrition interventions that target fathers should include their homemakers as well as food vendors.

Source: UCC
Assessing effectiveness of capacity building activities in decentralised local government institutions in the Central Region of Ghana

The study set out to assess the effectiveness of capacity building (CB) activities in three selected decentralised local government institutions in the Central Region of Ghana. In terms of methods, the descriptive survey design and mixed method approaches were employed. Multi-stage sampling procedures were used to select a sample of 417 respondents. Purposive sampling was used to select national and regional Directors, and Cape Coast Metropolitan Assembly. Simple random sampling technique was used to select the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA) Municipal Assembly and the Abura-Asebu-Kwamankese District Assembly. Questionnaires, interview schedules, and interview guides were used to collect data. Documentary reviews, descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse the data. The study found that although a lot of CB efforts have been made in the three study areas, they all focused mainly on training but not on other physical resources such as tools. The CB approach did not involve actors in needs assessment, design of programmes, as well as dearth of monitoring and evaluation of CB programmes. However, the approach influenced commitment, enthusiasm, empowerment, and learning, among others. There were statistically significant association between the comprehensiveness of CB activities and empowerment in the study MMDAs. The study recommends that officials of Local Government Service as well as leaders of the MMDAs should develop a CB framework to guide the approach. Leaders of the MMDAs should involve actors in the CB process to elicit ownership, empowerment, and learning.

Source: UCC
Assessing employee engagement through the compensation and benefits policies at the Central Regional office of the Electricity Company of Ghana

One of the most challenging tasks for most organisations today is not just retaining talented employees but fully engaging them, and capturing their minds and hearts at each stage of their work lives. Hence, this requires the need to put in place effective Human Resources policies that will fully suit the needs of employees in order to gain their loyalty and retain them. The current study sought to assess the level of employee engagement and by extension their turnover intentions in the context of the compensation and benefits policies, as well as other non-financial related factors of Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG). A cross sectional survey with the use of self-administered questionnaire was used to solicit the responses of 72 employees through a census approach at the Central Regional Office of ECG Limited. Frequency distribution, cross tabulation and the Spearman’s Correlation Matrix tests were used to analyse the data obtained in order to determine the relationship between the study variables. The results of the study showed that the compensation and benefits policies, as well as the non-financial factors had positively influenced the engagement levels of workers in the organisation. Consequently, the high engagement levels had also reduced the turnover intentions of employees. Also, there was no statistically significant relationship in terms of gender and job positions on the study variables. The study recommended to management of ECG to continue implementing the current policies on compensation and benefits. Also, the management should ensure that the mechanisms put in place for the processing and disbursement of staff benefits are reviewed to reduce bottlenecks in order to improve the time of delivery.

Source: UCC
Assessing environmental exposure and health impacts of gold mining in Ghana

Understanding the extent to which people are being exposed to environmental contaminants helps to identify those populations which may be disproportionately exposed to the contaminants of potential public health concern. This study represents the first report of a comparison of heavy metal arsenic (As), mercury (Hg), cadmium (Cd), cobalt (Co), copper (Cu), lead (Pb), platinum (Pt), zinc (Zn), and manganese (Mn) concentrations in the blood of residents of mining and non-mining communities in Ghana. Blood sampling, health records, and interviews were used in this study to establish the links between the levels of contaminants and health effects in humans within a mining and non-mining community in Ghana. Results of this study show that mean concentration of As in blood in Tarkwa Nsuaem Municipality/Prestea-Huni Valley District (TNMA/PHVD) (mining communities) and Cape Coast Metropolis (CCMA) (non-mining community) was 18- and 2-fold higher, respectively, than the WHO guideline value of 0.002mgL 1. The mean concentrations of As, Cd, Pb, Hg, and Mn were elevated up to 20-fold higher in the blood of resident adults and children in TNMA/PHVD than in CCMA. The risk of acute respiratory infections in the exposed populations of TNMA and PHVD were approximately 41- and 12-fold greater than the unexposed group. The risk of diabetes mellitus in the exposed populations of TNMA and PHVD were also approximately 20- and 4-fold higher than the unexposed group. In TNMA and PHVD, 40 blood donors were suffering from hyperkeratosis or pigmentation unlike their CCMA counterparts. Data suggest a potential association between mining activities and the levels of these heavy metals. However, the proportion of anthropogenic contribution to the levels of these metals in the blood remains uncertain. This uncertainty seems to be the umbrella under which both government and mining companies continue to hide, leading to inaction

Source: UCC
Assessing Farmers’ Knowledge and Socioeconomic Impacts of the Cocoa Hand Pollination Programme: The Case of the Atwima Nkwabiagya District, Ghana

Cocoa is one of Ghana's leading products, contributing significantly to the world market. In the past, Ghana held the top position as the leading cocoa producer, supporting millions of jobs in the cocoa sector. However, the current cocoa production has seen a decline attributed to various factors, including pest and disease infestations, poor maintenance, an ineffective extension system, and inadequate cocoa production practices. This study focuses on understanding farmers' knowledge and perceptions of hand pollination and its impact on cocoa yield and farm practices in the Atwima Nwabiagya district. Using structured questionnaire, 388 cocoa farmers were selected using the simple random sampling procedure. The descriptive cross-sectional design was employed. The data was analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistical approach. The findings revealed that Cocoa farmers in the Atwima Nwabiagya district had high knowledge level on hand pollination of cocoa. The finding showed that the adoption of hand pollination of cocoa leads to an increase in farmers’ productivity/yield and increased annual earnings. Also, the results showed that the adoption of hand pollination had significant impact on their livelihoods. Farmers reported to possess high human, social, physical, natural, and financial capital after adopting hand pollination method. Finding from the study have implications for policy and practices cocoa pollination and production in Ghana. For instance, Government through COCOBOD must establish tailored credit and savings schemes, facilitate access to financial services such as micro-credit and agricultural loans to farmers who adopt hand pollination in order to enable them make necessary investments in their farms

Source: UCC
Assessing Fund Management Practices Among Non-governmental Organisations in the Eastern Region of Ghana

Funds management practices has become an integral part of public organizations of which non-governmental organizations are not in exception. This study assessed assess fund management practices among Non-Governmental Organisations in Eastern Region of Ghana. The study employed non experimental research design (Descriptive research design) with cross sectional survey method for data collection. Simple random sampling technique is used to select 40 managers of NGOs to respond to survey questionnaires. Data were analyzed using statistics package for social science version 23 (SPSS) by employing mean, standard deviation, one way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and multiple regression. Findings revealed that the most prominent fund management practices among the NGOs are fund utilization, financial reporting, monitoring, auditing and accounting and budgeting. Multiple regression results revealed that monitoring and fund disbursement have positive significant effect on NGOs performance. The study further established that, pressure due to limited funds with expanding demand of project and much difficulty in allocating funds to various activities due to inadequate funds was the main challenges of the NGOs in the eastern region. The study recommended that NGOs should be able to diversify sources of revenue in order to meet expanding demand of project and also to be able to allocate funds to various activities. It is again recommended that there should be proper diversification strategy to improve revenue collection and also introduce robust model to improve revenue generations.

Source: UCC
Assessing Ghana’s bilateral exports potential and gap

Nations continue to explore ways and means of increasing and optimising their export flows with other nations across the world. Eliminating supply-side constraints in the export industry is a way to maintain and promote international demand for a country’s exports. To achieve this goal, it is important for every country to be fully aware of its export potential and gaps as well as the inefficiencies that confront their exports. In this regard, the study employed the stochastic frontier gravity model to assess Ghana’s bilateral export potential and gap for a panel of 61 countries over the period 2000-2017. The objective of this study was to assess Ghana’s export potential and gap and explore the inefficiencies accounting for these gaps. The frontier results show that Ghana's bilateral exports are positively influenced by importer income level, the population of both trading partners and common colonial ties whiles geographic distance and landlocked reduce bilateral export flows. The study also found a huge export potential and gap among all trading partners selected for the study, but the export gap is greatest among the ECOWAS region of about USD 5.9 billion. The results also indicated that the ‘behind the border’ constraints such as poor infrastructure and tax burden are responsible for a considerable gap between Ghana’s potential and actual exports. The tax burden of both trading partners and poor infrastructure of Ghana increases technical inefficiency. It is, therefore, recommended that the government and policymakers increase investment in trade-related infrastructure and also negotiate effectively with trading partners to eliminate all forms of tariff and non-tariff barriers that impede the export potential of Ghana.

Source: UCC
Assessing Ghana’s contemporary tourism development experience

The re-emerging acceptance of tourism as a pathway to development has culminated in widespread adoption of the trade by many poor countries. Ghana is one such country and, over the past three decades, has sought to use tourism as means of diversifying its economy. The substantial amounts invested in tourism by the government make it imperative to continually evaluate tourism performance and outcomes as a tool for socio-economic development. Yet, to date, very few studies have placed Ghana’s tourism experience under the spotlight. This paper focuses on how the trade has evolved into a major economic activity. It assesses the country’s interventions in the tourist trade over the years and it examines the performance of the tourist trade, first as an economic activity and second within its expected role as an agent for overall human development. By and large, the findings suggest that Ghana’s tourism development experience has been characterized by mixed fortunes. While there are indications of impressive macroeconomic gains, there have been challenges in the quest to translate these into the expected developmental outcomes at the more disaggregated communal and individual levels. Some weaknesses, notably, defects in policy, a powerless public sector, and low human capacities are suggested as contributing to the current state of stagnation the sector is experiencing

Source: UCC