ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Evaluating the Effect of Land use Land Cover Changes on Land Suitability for Crop Production Using Remote Sensing and GIS

The impact of Land Use and Cover Changes (LULCC) on agricultural land from 1986 to 2016 was examined using remote sensing (RS) and the Geographic Information System (GIS) in Kwara State, Nigeria. The aim of the study was to show how a GIS tool could be incorporated into a multicriteria analysis (MCA) and an Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) model to assess the suitability of land. Under several conditions, which define suitable land for arable cropping, the structural design of an integrated GIS-MCA-AHP was anticipated to correspond with the decision maker's preferences. Additionally, the integration was anticipated to quantify the extent of land cover modifications and assess how the removal of vegetation would affect the soil. As a major factor in the analysis, the Normalized Differential Vegetation Index (NDVI) was employed with GIS and Remote Sensing (RS) technologies, and, as secondary, MCA and AHP models. In Arc-Map (GIS), 10.3.1, the RS data imagery from 2016 was used and recognized by NDVI satellite images. The images were categorized according to RS data, field study data, and geographical factors. The variables were soil texture, depth, pH, organic carbon, rainfall, temperature, slope, elevation, and land use and land cover. To examine the extent of land use and land cover changes in relation to soil types and land suitability, the MCA-AHP model employed a weighted sum overlay. The results showed that farming accounted for 46% of all land use. and that LULCC was primarily to blame for the loss of arable land and environmental degradation. The proportion of the total land area used for farming (farmland), the built-up area, bare land, and water bodies increased from 34 to 46, 15 to 30.4, 5 to 10, and 3 to 4%, respectively. Forest land, on the other hand, saw a drop from 43 to 9.6%. While 11.40% of the total land area was highly suitable for arable cultivation, 19.30% was moderately suitable, 30.40% was marginally suitable, 23.12% was currently unsuitable, and 15.78% was permanently unsuitable. The study shows that the AHP model was useful for calculating land use weights that were comparable to those calculated using other techniques. The model was helpful in making plans. decisions for land use, and thus could be useful in managing sustainable agriculture. It was concluded that in addition to the fast rate of deforestation, increasing anthropogenic activities were degrading arable land at the study site.

Source: UG
Evaluating the Effects of Kidney Preservation at 10 ◦C with Hemopure and Sodium Thiosulfate in a Rat Model of Syngeneic Orthotopic Kidney Transplantation

Kidney transplantation is preferred for end-stage renal disease. The current gold standard for kidney preservation is static cold storage (SCS) at 4 ◦C. However, SCS contributes to renal graft damage through ischemia–reperfusion injury (IRI). We previously reported renal graft protection after SCS with a hydrogen sulfide donor, sodium thiosulfate (STS), at 4 ◦C. Therefore, this study aims to investigate whether SCS at 10 ◦C with STS and Hemopure (blood substitute), will provide similar protection. Using in vitro model of IRI, we subjected rat renal proximal tubular epithelial cells to hypoxia–reoxygenation for 24 h at 10 ◦C with or without STS and measured cell viability. In vivo, we preserved 36 donor kidneys of Lewis rats for 24 h in a preservation solution at 10 ◦C supplemented with STS, Hemopure, or both followed by transplantation. Tissue damage and recipient graft function parameters, including serum creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, urine osmolality, and glomerular filtration rate (GFR), were evaluated. STS-treated proximal tubular epithelial cells exhibited enhanced viability at 10 ◦C compared with untreated control cells (p < 0.05). Also, STS and Hemopure improved renal graft function compared with control grafts (p < 0.05) in the early time period after the transplant, but long-term function did not reach significance. Overall, renal graft preservation at 10 ◦C with STS and Hemopure supplementation has the potential to enhance graft function and reduce kidney damage, suggesting a novel approach to reducing IRI and post-transplant complications.

Source: UG
Evaluating the effects of storage conditions on dry matter loss and nutritional quality of grain legume fodders in West Africa

Feed scarcity is a major challenge for livestock production in West Africa, especially during the dry season when grass quality and quantity on grazing lands are inadequate. In the dry season, crop residues are a key source of livestock feed. The residues of grain legumes, also known as grain legume fodders (GLFs), are stored and traded for feeding in the dry season. The objectives of our experiment were to evaluate the effects of storage conditions and duration on dry matter (DM) and nutritional quality of GLFs, and to assess the risk of aflatoxin in stored groundnut fodder. The experiment was designed as a factorial trial with 18 treatment combinations with four replicates (4 farms). The treatments included: 3 types of GLFs (cowpea, groundnut and soybean fodder), 3 types of storage locations (rooftop, room and tree-fork) and 2 types of packaging (packed in polythene sacks and unpacked but tied with rope). Over a 120 day storage period, DM quantity reduced by an average of 24 % across all storage conditions, showing a range from 14 % in the best condition (sacks and rooms) to 35 % in the worst condition (bundles tied with rope and stored on rooftops or tree-forks). Soybean fodder had no leaves, the lowest crude protein content (CP) and organic matter digestibility (OMD), and the highest content of cell wall components compared to cowpea and groundnut fodder. These nutritional quality parameters in soybean fodder hardly changed during storage. Cowpea and groundnut fodder showed a decrease in leaf-to-stem ratio (LSR), CP and OMD, and an increase in the content of cell wall components during storage, but their nutritional value remained better than that of soybean fodder. Storage in sacks resulted in less DM loss, in less reduction of LSR and in a smaller increase of the content of cell wall components than storage of bundles tied with rope. Our study shows that the DM loss, the decrease in LSR, and the increase in the content of cell wall components can be prevented partly by storing GLFs in sacks instead of tying bundles with rope, and to a minor extent by storing in rooms instead of in the open air. Aflatoxin was not detectable in the groundnut fodder samples. Our results highlight that attention to storage conditions can improve the feeding value of GLFs which are key for livestock nutrition during the dry season.

Source: UG
Evaluating the Effects of Subnormothermic Perfusion with AP39 in a Novel Blood-Free Model of Ex Vivo Kidney Preservation and Reperfusion

The use of blood for normothermic and subnormothermic kidney preservation hinders the translation of these approaches and promising therapeutics. This study evaluates whether adding hydrogen sulfide donor AP39 to Hemopure, a blood substitute, during subnormothermic perfusion improves kidney outcomes. After 30 min of renal pedicle clamping, porcine kidneys were treated to 4 h of static cold storage (SCS-4 ◦C) or subnormothermic perfusion at 21 ◦C with Hemopure (H-21 ◦C), Hemopure + 200 nM AP39 (H200nM-21 ◦C) or Hemopure + 1 µM AP39 (H1µM-21 ◦C). Then, kidneys were reperfused with Hemopure at 37 ◦C for 4 h with metabolic support. Perfusate composition, tissue oxygenation, urinalysis and histopathology were analyzed. During preservation, the H200nM-21 ◦C group exhibited significantly higher urine output than the other groups and significantly higher tissue oxygenation than the H1µM-21 ◦C group at 1 h and 2h. During reperfusion, the H200nM-21 ◦C group exhibited significantly higher urine output and lower urine protein than the other groups. Additionally, the H200nM-21 ◦C group exhibited higher perfusate pO2 levels than the other groups and significantly lower apoptotic injury than the H-21 ◦C and the H1µM-21 ◦C groups. Thus, subnormothermic perfusion at 21 ◦C with Hemopure + 200 nM AP39 improves renal outcomes. Additionally, our novel blood-free model of ex vivo kidney preservation and reperfusion could be useful for studying other therapeutics.

Source: UG
Evaluating the Environmental-Technology Gaps of Rice Farms in Distinct Agro-Ecological Zones of Ghana

Rice (Oryza sativa) is an important food staple and a cash crop, which is cultivated in all the ten regions of Ghana under varying agro-ecological conditions. These conditions also reflect the production technologies used and the total farm output. In an attempt to determine the potential sources of production shortfalls on rice farms in Ghana, this paper estimates the production efficiency and the environmental-technology gaps of rice-producing households in the forest-savannah transition and guinea savannah agro-ecological zones of Ghana. The paper adopts the stochastic metafrontier framework, which permits technology-related inefficiency effects to be extricated from managerial inefficiency effects for appropriate policy formulation. In contrast to past studies, the empirical findings reveal that farms in the two agro-ecological zones adopt heterogeneous production technologies due to differences in their production environments. This is indicated by the estimated mean environmental-technology gap ratios of 0.95 and 0.50, and mean metafrontier technical efficiencies of 0.56 and 0.42 for farms in the forest-savannah transition and guinea savannah zones, respectively. These findings call for agricultural policy formulation in Ghana to be targeted at the prevailing environmental conditions of the various agro-ecological zones rather than being all-inclusive in addressing the extant inefficiencies in the rice production systems of Ghana.

Source: UG
Evaluating the explanations for the informal economy in third world cities: some evidence from Koforidua in the eastern region of Ghana

This paper re-evaluates the explanations for informal work in third world cities. Until now, informal work has been theorized either as a residue (modernisation), by-product of contemporary capitalism conducted out of economic necessity (structuralism) or an alternative to formal work chosen due to either an over-burdensome state (neo-liberalism) or for social, redistributive, resistance or identity reasons (post-structuralism). Reporting a study of 80 households in Koforidua in Ghana, this paper finds that although its depiction as a residue is not valid, the other representations of the informal economy are each valid in relation to different types of informal work and varying populations in this third world city, and that only by combining them will a finer-grained and more comprehensive understanding of the diverse nature of the informal economy be achieved. The outcome is a call for more nuanced explanations of the informal economy in other contexts.

Source: UG
Evaluating the factors that influence public sector involvement in Ghanaian public-private partnership (PPP) power projects

Purpose – In comparison to other countries, power generation in Sub-Sahara Africa is poor. Public–private partnership (PPP) model has become increasingly popular for addressing infrastructural challenges, especially in the power sector. The purpose of this study is to evaluate and classify the factors that influence public sector involvement in Ghanaian PPP power projects. Design/methodology/approach – Using purposive and snowball sampling techniques, questionnaires were used to gather responses from experts in the PPP power sector in a two round Delphi survey. Analytical tools adopted were descriptive statistics, mean score ranking, Cronbach’s alpha and factor analysis. Findings – The most significant factors that influence public sector involvement in PPP power projects were: achieving improved value for money; access to additional capital; increased certainty of projects; greater efficiency of project delivery services; and improved ability to deliver new infrastructure. From factor analysis, the four components were: value for money and efficiency; capital and skills; innovation and technology; and project delivery

Source: UG
Evaluating the impact of a community-based parent training programme for children with cerebral palsy in Ghana

Background In low and middle-income settings, where access to support and rehabilitation services for children with disabilities are often lacking, the evidence base for community initiatives is limited. This study aimed to explore the impact of a community-based training programme for caregivers of children with cerebral palsy in Ghana. Methods A pre and post evaluation of an 11-month participatory training programme (“Getting to Know Cerebral Palsy”) offered through a parent group model, was conducted. Eight community groups, consisting of a total of 75 caregivers and their children with cerebral palsy (aged 18 months-12 years), were enrolled from 8 districts across Ghana. Caregivers were interviewed at baseline, and again at 2 months after the completion of the programme, to assess: quality of life (PedsQL™ Family Impact Module); knowledge about their child’s condition; child health indicators; feeding practices. Severity of cerebral palsy, reported illness, and anthropometric measurements were also assessed. Results Of the child-caregiver pairs, 64 (84%) were included in final analysis. There were significant improvements in caregiver quality of life score (QoL) (median total QoL 12.5 at baseline to 51.4 at endline, P<0.001). Caregivers reported significant improvements in knowledge and confidence in caring for their child (p<0.001), in some aspects of child feeding practices (p<0.001) and in their child’s physical and emotional heath (p< 0.001). Actual frequency of reported serious illness over 12-months remained high (67%) among children, however, a small reduction in recent illness episodes (past 2 weeks) was seen (64% to 50% p < 0.05). Malnutrition was common at both time points; 63% and 65% of children were classified as underweight at baseline and endline respectively (p = 0.5). Conclusion Children with cerebral palsy have complex care and support needs which in low and middle-income settings need to be met by their family. This study demonstrates that a participatory training, delivered through the establishment of a local support group, with an emphasis on caregiver empowerment, resulted in improved caregiver QoL. Despite less effect on effect on child health and no clear effect on nutritional status, this alone is an important outcome. Whilst further development of these programmes would be helpful, and is underway, there is clear need for wider scale-up of an intervention which provides support to families.

Source: UG
Evaluating the impact of alternative intervention strategies in accelerating onchocerciasis elimination in an area of persistent transmission in the West Region of Cameroon

The Department of Parasitology conducts research into parasitic diseases of public health importance with the overall goal of reducing their transmission and the heavy disease burden that they impose on affected populations. The Department maintains focus on parasitic diseases in general. These include major diseases such as malaria, and others listed under the Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) control initiative such as, lymphatic filariasis, onchocerciasis, schistosomiasis, soil-transmitted helminthiasis, trypanosomiasis and leishmaniasis.

Source: UG
Evaluating the impact of the community-based health planning and services initiative on uptake of skilled birth care in Ghana

Background: The Community-based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) initiative is a major government policy to improve maternal and child health and accelerate progress in the reduction of maternal mortality in Ghana. However, strategic intelligence on the impact of the initiative is lacking, given the persistant problems of patchy geographical access to care for rural women. This study investigates the impact of proximity to CHPS on facilitating uptake of skilled birth care in rural areas. Methods and Findings: Data from the 2003 and 2008 Demographic and Health Survey, on 4,349 births from 463 rural communities were linked to georeferenced data on health facilities, CHPS and topographic data on national road-networks. Distance to nearest health facility and CHPS was computed using the closest facility functionality in ArcGIS 10.1. Multilevel logistic regression was used to examine the effect of proximity to health facilities and CHPS on use of skilled care at birth, adjusting for relevant predictors and clustering within communities. The results show that a substantial proportion of births continue to occur in communities more than 8 km from both health facilities and CHPS. Increases in uptake of skilled birth care are more pronounced where both health facilities and CHPS compounds are within 8 km, but not in communities within 8 km of CHPS but lack access to health facilities. Where both health facilities and CHPS are within 8 km, the odds of skilled birth care is 16% higher than where there is only a health facility within 8km. Conclusion: Where CHPS compounds are set up near health facilities, there is improved access to care, demonstrating the facilitatory role of CHPS in stimulating access to better care at birth, in areas where health facilities are accessible.

Source: UG
Evaluating the Impacts of Dredging and Saline Water Intrusion on Rural Livelihoods in the Volta Estuary

Many communities around the world are directly dependent on rivers. In Ghana the damming of the Volta River for hydro-electric power led to the development of a sandbar at the estuary, which disrupted salt water intrusion. Inadequate salt water intrusion also led to the proliferation of snail vectors of schistosomiasis (bilharzia) and growth of aquatic weeds. In 1990, dredging began at the Volta Estuary to address the identified problems. After more than 20 years, information on the impacts of the dredging activities remain scanty. In this paper, the socio-economic impacts of dredging activities being carried out by the Volta River Authority was investigated using interviews, analysing salinity data, sampling schistosomiasis snail vectors and administering questionnaires. The results revealed that sea water intrusion has improved. However average salinity at some points exhibited downward trends. No snail vectors were sampled at the estuary due to saline water intrusion at high tides. While the number of tourists visiting the area has increased, livelihood activities such as fishing and farming have declined. Hence while dredging at the Volta Estuary has helped to reduce some of the physical problems posed by the construction of dams on the Volta River it has failed to improve the livelihoods of local residents. The authors recommend alternative livelihood programmes to address poverty and well-being issues in the surrounding communities. It also advocates for understanding of the value systems and priorities of residents to ensure projects are integrated within the traditional governance structures and community priorities to minimize conflicts.

Source: UG
Evaluating the Viability of the Ghan Airport Cargo Centre as a Public-Private Partnership Project

This chapter evaluates the viability of Ghana Airport Cargo Centre as a public-private partnership project and discusses its implications using desk reviews, interviews, air cargo data, and the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats analytical tool. The study found that safety and security, development of a state-of-the-art cargo terminal, competitiveness, and local expertise and technology transfer were key strengths of the partnership. Relatively low cargo volumes were found to be a weakness. Peace, democracy, and economic stability were also found to be opportunities, while potential political interference, the COVID-19 pandemic, and competition within the West African subregion were found to be threats of the partnership. The study concluded that the current partnership arrangement, whereby private equity is substantially high, and the government simply concentrates on providing the “enabling environment” and minimal investment, is a good venture that must be encouraged in Africa.

Source: UG
Evaluation of a community-based hypertension improvement program (ComHIP) in Ghana: data from a baseline survey

Background: Ghana faces an increasing burden of non-communicable disease with rates of hypertension estimated as high as 36% in adults. Despite these high rates, hypertension control remains very poor in Ghana (4%). The current project aims to implement and evaluate a community-based programme to raise awareness, and to improve treatment and control of hypertension in the Eastern Region of Ghana. In this paper, we present the findings of the baseline cross-sectional survey focusing on hypertension prevalence, awareness, treatment, and control. Methods: To evaluate the ComHIP project, a quasi-experimental design consisted of a before and after evaluations are being implemented in the intervention and comparison districts. A cohort study component is being implemented in the intervention district to assess hypertension control. Background anthropometric and clinical data collected as part of the baseline survey were analyzed in STATA Version 11. We examined the characteristics of individuals, associated with the baseline study outcomes using logistic regression models. Results: We interviewed 2400 respondents (1200 each from the comparison and intervention districts), although final sample sizes after data cleaning were 1170 participants in the comparison district and 1167 in the intervention district. With the exception of ethnicity, the control and intervention districts compare favorably. Overall 32.4% of the study respondents were hypertensive (31.4% in the control site; and 33.4% in the intervention site); 46.2% of hypertensive individuals were aware of a previous diagnosis of hypertension (44.7% in the control site, and 47.7% in the intervention site), and only around 9% of these were being treated in either arm. Hypertension control was 1.3% overall (0.5% in the comparison site, and 2.1% in the intervention site). Age was a predictor of having hypertension, and so was increasing body mass index (BMI), waist, and hip circumferences. After adjusting for age, the risk factors with the greatest association with hypertension were being overweight (aOR = 2.30; 95% CI 1.53-3.46) or obese (aOR = 3.61; 95% CI 2.37-5.51). Older individuals were more likely to be aware of their hypertension status than younger people. After adjusting for age people with a family history of hypertension or CVD, or having an unhealthy waist hip ratio, were more likely to be aware of their hypertension status. Conclusions: The high burden of hypertension among the studied population, coupled with high awareness, yet very low level of hypertension treatment and control requires in-depth investigation of the bottlenecks to treatment and control. The low hypertension treatment and control rates despite current and previous general educational programs particularly in the intervention district, may suggest that such programs are not necessarily impactful on the health of the population.

Source: UG