ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
A hand book of ceramics for senior secondary schools (year one)

One of the basic factors for effective teaching and learning is the availability of pertinent information packaged to meet the standard or level of particular students. In view of this, most programmes in the Senior Secondary Schools in Ghana have been provided with textbooks for their various subject areas. But unfortunately the Visual Arts Programmes in the Ghanaian Senior Secondary Schools have no textbooks, besides the General Knowledge in Art. Ceramics, one of the Visual Art course in the Senior Secondary Schools is faced with similar challenge. This study aims at providing a handbook of ceramics for SSS year one. An analysis of responses to questionnaires pertaining to teachers and students access to textbooks or reference materials in ceramics, as well as assessment of the possible factors impeding smooth teaching and learning of the course as a result of limited course book are made. Pertinent and relevant information based on the SS 1 syllabus were searched for and compiled into a handbook to assist in improving the teaching and learning of ceramics in the first year of the Senior Secondary Schools in Ghana. The effectiveness of the book was, however, tested. Suggestions for further improvement upon teaching and learning of ceramics at the SSS are finally made.

Source: KNUST
Hairstyles for fabric designing and production

Textile designing and production over the last century is becoming more sophisticated and intriguing. It has progressed rapidly and steadily in its quest to seek for more opportunities and possibilities for expression. As a result of this evolution, over the last decades, rather amazing things have come not only to contend the traditional landmark of textile designing and production, but to also reshape it. The focus of the project explores textile design concepts based on indigenous and contemporary hairstyles by examining their intricate arrangements and styles. Design principles were applied to originate assorted textile designs, using a computer software, Photoshop as a design tool. Consequently, over twenty textile designs based purely on hairstyles including elements, textures and some colour ways have been made. A textile design catalogue of the results has been produced and some of the outcome has been successfully printed onto appropriate textile materials. The qualitative research approach was used and the researcher specifically employed experimental and observational research methods. Some of the results show that varieties of hairstyles are potential areas for textile design. The researcher recommends that a lot more emphasis ought to be placed on the designing components in the textile course in our curriculum focusing on how to take advantage of the computer age to explore numerous designing software available to improve textile designing process.

Source: KNUST
Hand painting

‘Hand painting’, painting directly with the bare hand, has been an old painting tool since the discovery of art and existence of early man, probably the most important part of the human body for creating visible images by cave age man. The hand has been used directly in various forms of expressions and it supersedes all other creative tools known to man. The researcher sought to further expand the expressions made using hand as tool direct for painting taking inspiration from old VW beetles to document these old important cars, which are rapidly fading away due to the production of new models. The researcher’s interest in bare hand application of paint reflects an old African traditional tool and a major player in indigenous African art culture in contemporary expressions. The direct hand application has proven to be an excellent means of executing paint on canvas and the expressions produced give effects comparable to other known tools. This affability of the hand with using acrylic paint as medium for painting has not been fully explored; it is for this reason that the researcher sought to make people especially artists, art tutors and art connoisseurs, come to appreciate this important tool for applying paint. The hand has also been revealed as an important painting tool that has been used by some contemporary artists of which most artists in Ghana have not yet 4 recognized and experimented with. The researcher visited Sirigu a village in the Navrongo District in the Upper East Region of Ghana, where traditional mural paintings are done on buildings involving the direct use of the hand in executing these magnificent murals. The purpose of the field work was to acquire first hand information from traditional artists on hand painting. The knowledge gained has enriched and made this research possible.

Source: KNUST
Hand Washing practices of retail Food Vendors in Adansi North District of Ashanti Region

INTRODUCTION Hand washing is the act of cleaning hands for the purpose of removing soil, dirt, and microorganisms. Food vendor’s hand washing practice is most important because they deal with a lot of people and washing their hands can be a least expensive measure to prevent the transmission of infections including nosocomial infections. OBJECTIVE The purpose of the study was to determine the hand washing practices among food vendors in Adansi North, Ghana. METHODS A descriptive cross sectional study was carried out among 396 retail food vendors and 2 officers from Environmental Health Officers. Data were collected using questionnaire, observational checklist and interview guide. The instrument solicit information on the socio demographic characteristics, knowledge on hand washing practices, factors influencing hand washing practices and licenses of hand washing. RESULTS The results indicated that retail food vendors have knowledge on hand washing practices, 96.70% have heard something about hand washing and majority (55.32%) of these acquired knowledge about hand washing through the media. Likewise, the attitude towards hand washing was positive as majority (94.42%) asserted hand washing is the responsibility of the individual food vendors. Almost all the participants (90.86%) have license to sell food and most were invited before they acquired license to sell food. There was a significant difference (p> 0.005) between variables such as vendor’s level of education, marital status and the number of years a person has used to sell food and hand washing

Source: KNUST
Haematological profile of acute and chronic Hepatitis B positive patients attending Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital

Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) infection still remains a major global health problem, especially in hyper-endemic countries like Ghana. The infection presents as acute infection which may develop into chronic infection, and may be symptomatic or asymptomatic. The study determined the haematological profile likely to present at the various stages of the infection, including the acute and chronic stages seen at Komfo Anokye Hospital. The study recruited 122 each of HBV infected and uninfected subjects from 218 HBV infected and 1351 HBV uninfected patients, from August 2015 to April 2016. The infected subjects were grouped into acute and chronic subjects by their positivity or negativity respectively to HBcAb-IgM test. The infected subjects were also grouped into symptomatic and asymptomatic subjects based on their clinical signs and symptoms and their ALT levels. The Complete Blood Count, Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR) and Peripheral Blood Examination of all the subjects were determined by standard manual and automated methods. Hepatitis B prevalence of 13.8% was recorded by the study. The HBV infected as well as the symptomatic subjects recorded significant (P<0.05) abnormally high ESR but low RBC count, Hb concentration and HCT compared to the uninfected and asymptomatic subjects who recorded normal values of these parameters. Also the symptomatic subjects recorded abnormally high Total WBC and Neutrophil count compared to the normal values recorded for asymptomatic subjects. There was no significant difference in all the haematological parameters of the acute and chronic infected subjects, although both recorded abnormally high ESR, and WBC count; but low Hb concentration, RBC count and HCT value. No haematological malignant cells was recorded in the peripheral blood of the subjects, although the HBV infected subjects showed significant (P<0.05) peripheral blood picture of Atypical Mononuclear cells, Reactive Lymphocytes and RBC hypochromasia compared to the uninfected subjects. It is recommended that education on prevention of HBV infection be intensified to help reduce the high prevalence rate revealed by the study. Also as part of the management of HBV infected patients, routine haematological investigations should be carried out, particularly for symptomatic HBV infected patients as well as acute and chronic patients, to help remedy the likely haematological abnormalities that they may present, in order to enhance their overall effective management.

Source: KNUST
Handwashing behaviour of Caregivers and reported Diarrhoea among under Five Children in the Bongo District of the Upper East Region of Ghana.

Background: The crucial role of HWWS, sanitation in diarrheal disease causation is reported all over the world. For decades, diarrheal disease has contributed significantly to morbidity and mortality in both developing and developed countries, its implication is usually evident in developing countries than the developed ones. The study seeks to make the necessary recommendations to policy makers to develop and implement strategies necessary for curbing canker of diarrhoea especially among the rural poor. Methods: Data was collected from 6 sub districts in the Bongo District involving 422 participants out of which 16 were non respondents using convenient sampling. Methods of data analyses included, simple logistic regression, Chi square test, and multivariate logistic regression. Results: Results from the study showed a good knowledge of caregivers on HWWS 89.3% with a rather 52.1% of the respondents knowing the true definition of diarrhea. there was no statistically significant relationship between the care givers knowledge on hand washing and the occurrence of diarrhea (OR: 1.11; 95% CI 0.52, 2.37, p=0.78). Also, the attitude of the respondents was high at 92.6%. Furthermore, the factors inhibiting HWWS among those which were statistically significant include, Water Scarcity(p=0.004), HWWS affect appetite (p=0.001), Hands not visibly dirty(p=0.002) and Feeling of low risk(p=0.001). Conclusions: In conclusion, even though there is a high knowledge level of caregivers to handwashing with soap under running water, there is no positive relation of the high knowledge to reported cases of diarrhea and this study therefore urges policy makers and the general populace to translate the knowledge into practice of HWWS as well as an enabling environment for good sanitation practices for the prevention of diarrhea.

Source: KNUST
Handwashing behaviour of caregivers and reported diarrhoea among under five Children in the Bongo District of the Upper East Region of Ghana.

Background: The crucial role of HWWS, sanitation in diarrheal disease causation is reported all over the world. For decades, diarrheal disease has contributed significantly to morbidity and mortality in both developing and developed countries, its implication is usually evident in developing countries than the developed ones. The study seeks to make the necessary recommendations to policy makers to develop and implement strategies necessary for curbing canker of diarrhoea especially among the rural poor. Methods: Data was collected from 6 subdistricts in the Bongo District involving 422 participants out of which 16 were non respondents using convenient sampling. Methods of data analyses included, simple logistic regression, Chi square test, and multivariate logistic regression. Results: Results from the study showed a good knowledge of caregivers on HWWS 89.3% with a rather 52.1% of the respondents knowing the true definition of diarrhea. there was no statistically significant relationship between the care givers knowledge on hand washing and the occurrence of diarrhea (OR: 1.11; 95% CI 0.52, 2.37, p=0.78). Also, the attitude of the respondents was high at 92.6%. Furthermore, the factors inhibiting HWWS among those which were statistically significant include, Water Scarcity(p=0.004), HWWS affect appetite (p=0.001), Hands not visibly dirty(p=0.002) and Feeling of low risk(p=0.001). Conclusions: In conclusion, even though there is a high knowledge level of caregivers to handwashing with soap under running water, there is no positive relation of the high knowledge to reported cases of diarrhea and this study therefore urges policy makers and the general populace to translate the knowledge into practice of HWWS as well as an enabling environment for good sanitation practices for the prevention of diarrhea.

Source: KNUST
Harmonisation of company laws in Africa: The way forward.

The general call for harmonisation of company laws is more imperative now than before. This is partly as a result of a concerted agenda of members of WTO towards a global economy and common market for goods and services. With the significant disappearance of trade restrictions, trade quotas, border restrictions and so forth, the need for harmonisation of company laws is more compelling now than before. Though it is generally accepted that harmonisation of company laws will facilitate foreign investment, the efforts made so far towards harmonisation of company laws has not been encouraging. The broad brass approach adopted by regional and sub-regional organisations in Africa has not yielded much success. It is submitted that a paradigm shift in the nature of adoption of directives and guidelines is the way to go for the harmonisation of company laws in Africa. The use of directives is more suitable for African company law harmonisation project due to the entrenched idiosyncrasies of African states. The use of directives as the method of harmonisation is more flexible and less threatening to the political sovereignty of states. It is postulated that with the use of directives and guidelines as method of harmonisation of company laws, Africa will achieve its goal of ensuring certainty and predictability of company law across board.

Source: KNUST
Harnessing aquaculture as a strategy for poverty reduction in some selected Districts in the Western Region of Ghana

This research work investigates the role that both the private and public sectors have played to harness the development of aquaculture in the three selected districts of the Western Region, namely Juabeso, Bia and Aowin Suaman. The NDPC (2002-2005) indicates that there is a high incidence of poverty (59 percent) among food crop farmers. They further indicated that 54 percent of the populations do not have access to safe water and other basic services. The need to reduce poverty and improve the living conditions has ignited the call for diversification of agricultural activities through aquaculture. Following literature review, reconnaissance survey was conducted to identify the difficulties to be anticipated in the area and to establish a rapport with potential respondents in the three districts. Multi-stage sampling technique was adopted and three districts where aquaculture was a major occupation were randomly selected out of five. The objective was to keep the cost of the survey low without seriously affecting the validity of the results. This was followed by questionnaire survey and interviews with those engaged in aquaculture. The data analyses revealed associated with labour shortage, land acquisition, lack of financial support and the deficiency in the number of staff with knowledge in aquaculture made the industry unattractive to farmers. The District Assembly should facilitate the provision of financial support to the farmers through the banks. The research recommends that farmers should form Farmer Based Organizations (FBOs) in order to access loans and help each other in digging their ponds and also award hardworking fish farmers during farmers’ day celebrations. There is also the need to train more staff and farmers to acquire techniques in aquaculture and research into fish species that can thrive well in the study area. In collaboration with MoFA, the District Assembly should establish hatcheries at district capitals for easy accessibility. If these measures are put in place, the small scale rural farmers would have improved their standard of living.

Source: KNUST
Harnessing Potential in Heritage Sites The Adaptive Reuse of Old Buildings in Old Accra

In an attempt to regenerate the Old Accra Township, the Ministry of Tourism and Modernization of the Capital City is undertaking various urban regeneration projects to help achieve its aim. Most of the urban regeneration projects include the adaptive reuse of some historical buildings taking into consideration interests of visitors to the site as well as the needs of the community. In developing heritage sites, although concern should be on the heritage objects, other supporting elements in its environment should be considered as well. The built environment of heritage sites can have key roles to play in managing the sites values. Buildings on heritage sites may not be of historic importance; however they form an embodiment of the sites values. These buildings have survived several years of history and tell their story in their own characteristic features. Revival and renewal of the old buildings will enable them tell a better story to be understood by all to enable their community derive great benefits from them. The goal of this thesis is the sustainability of Old Accra. The idea is to investigate adaptive reuse efforts on the site and its ability to aid in developing the site. The premise is to adapt the old buildings in Old Accra to new uses, convenient with socio-economic and cultural structure of the site.

Source: KNUST
Harmony search algorithm for dynamic nurse scheduling in teaching hospitals

In many hospitals all over the world, the task of efficiently scheduling nurses to meet the workforce demand is a daunting one. This is due to the sheer number of possible permutations possible, the high possibility that departments are understaffed, and the many stringent constraints that are naturally imposed by the working environment and contract. It usually takes a long time for an incharge to come up with a solution that is merely good enough, and such solutions may even contain errors. Many researchers over the decades have attempted to tackle this problem in various ways, with varying results. However, the unique nature of this problem makes it difficult to apply one solution to another area. This study is an important step in the search for a generalised solution that will be useful at least in all hospitals in Ghana. A novel Harmony Search Algorithm was adopted and implemented, while taking into account the pertinent local parameters. This was tested with an evaluation algorithm that was also adopted and implemented from literature. It was found that the algorithm excelled at generating fair and high quality schedules for one week with varying combinations of constraints, but faltered when the scheduling period was increased to 2 weeks and beyond.

Source: KNUST
Hazard Analysis of Metalaxyl Residues in Cocoa Beans

Metalaxyl is a widely used fungicide and one of the important pollutants in the environment, and will result in potential health threat to humans and environmental pollution, so its residues in food production have received more and more attention. Currently, very limited data on the distribution of residues of metalaxyl in agricultural products have been reported. The aim of the study was to determine the distribution of metalaxyl residues in cocoa beans from the cocoa growing regions of Ghana and compare to the current maximum residue limits (MRL) established by Codex, Japan and EU and the proposed EU MRL. Residues of metalaxyl were estimated in two hundred and four (204) samples of fermented, dried and merchantable cocoa beans by GCMS following extraction and clean-up. From the results of the study, 76.96% of the total samples analyzed had no detection of metalaxyl residues, however, 23.04% showed detection which 8.33% had metalaxyl residues lower than the proposed EU (0.02 mg/kg) MRL and 14.71% had metalaxyl residues above the proposed EU MRL. Metalaxyl residues recorded in the samples from the regions were all below the current Codex (0.2 mg/kg), Japan (0.2 mg/kg) and EU (0.1 mg/kg) MRL. However, residues of metalaxyl recorded in the samples from Western north and south, Ashanti and Central region were above the proposed EU (0.02 mg/kg) MRL. The highest mean metalaxyl residue level detected in the samples analyzed was seen in Western south (0.029 mg/kg) followed by Ashanti (0.025 mg/kg), Central (0.024 mg/kg), Western north (0.023 mg/kg), Brong Ahafo (0.019 mg/kg) and Eastern (0.016 mg/kg) region. No significant variation (p>0.05) was found between the mean metalaxyl residues recorded in the samples from Ashanti, Brong Ahafo, Central and Eastern region even though there were differences in the metalaxyl residue concentrations. However, signifiant variation (p<0.05) was found between the mean metalaxyl residues recorded in the samples from Western south, Western north and Eastern regions.

Source: KNUST
Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) Plan for Dried Fruit Processing

To process dried pineapples, fresh pineapples are washed, peeled, cured and sliced into rings or chunks. Sliced pineapples are then dipped in 5 ppm Na2S2O5 and spread on trays for drying in a forced hot air chamber set at 62°C to 65°C for 24 hours. Dried fruits, usually to a moisture content of 12% to 13%, are cooled, trimmed and packed. In this study, the principles of HACCP were applied to forced air dried fruits processing using pineapple as the reference product. Following a typical batch processing from reception of raw materials to the final product is packed in a secondary carbon carton, each process step was correctly identified and subjected to hazard analysis to identified all potential food safety hazards that could possibly be associated with each step. Each hazard identified was classified based on the three major hazards, (biological, chemical and physical) and subjected to a hazard evaluation matrix to determine the level of significance. Six (6) hazards associated with five (5) processing steps were evaluated to have high level of significance. The steps are peeling, drying, trimming and metal scanning and the hazards are biological except for peeling and drying that also possess significant physical hazard risk from iron fillings from cutting edges and rust within the drying chamber. Subjecting these steps to the CCP Decision Tree, the drying and scanning steps were identified as CCPs to control biological and physical hazards respectively. Drying at 62°C for 24 hours does not only destroy pathogens but also brings the product to moisture content of less than 14%, aw ˂.065 and 3.04-4.0 pH. These characteristics also constitute a multi-huddle to prevent survival and growth of most pathogens. A metal detector validated for Ferrous 1.19mm, Non-ferrous 2.0mm and Stainless 2.5mm is also effective CCP for detecting and eliminating products that could be contaminated with iron fillings or flacks of rust. Thus two (2) CCPs were identified and critical limits set for drying at 62°C for 24 hours and scanning with a metal detector with sensitivity of Ferrous 1.19mm, Non-ferrous 2.0mm and Stainless 2.5mm.

Source: KNUST