Capital City Of Ghana Research Articles

Understanding People’s Motives for visiting Public Green Spaces in Accra to aid the Development of Urban Greenery in Ghana

In the recent past, the empirical evidence of the potential benefits urbanites derive from the use of urban green space has received increased attention. However, not much research has been done on the use of urban green areas, especially in developing African countries like Ghana. This paper determines the motives of the public for visiting urban green spaces and the factors that influence their perception of the quality of urban natural areas in Ghana, using Accra, the capital city of Ghana, as the case study. The questionnaire method was used for the collection of quantitative data from the public. The findings revealed “socialising”, “mental wellbeing or restitution” and “spirituality” as the significant motives of residents for the usage of green spaces in Accra. The results further show that the key factors that influence the public’s perception of the quality and utilisation of green spaces in Accra are the spaces’ physical features, conditions of facilities, sanitation and security concerns. The outcome of the research revealed a thought-provoking perspective for future research on “spirituality” as significant users’ motivation for visiting urban green spaces since the “spirituality” factor is deficient in literature. The findings from this study are critical for policy-makers, urban designers and landscape architects to understand the vital motives of users and the factors that influence the use of green spaces, to improve the development and management of urban green areas in Ghana and other developing countries. Keywords: Urban Green Space, motives, greenery, Accra, Ghana DOI: 10.7176/DCS/10-8-08 Publication date: August 31 st 2020

The Influence of Motivation on the Performance of Employees in the Ghanaian Banking Sector

This study focused on motivational factors and their influence on employee performance in the Ghanaian Banking Sector. The reason for conducting the study was that there has been a problem of employee demotivation in the financial institutions. The research was a survey in the commercial banks in the Accra, the Capital City of Ghana. Data were collected from managerial employees in the Head Offices of the financial institutions. The researcher used questionnaires and interviews as research instruments. Quantitative data was analysed using SPSS while thematic analysis was used in qualitative data analysis. The findings of the study were that most of the banking entities had fairly ‘young’ employee base that tended to put high valence of extrinsic motivational factors, and that the Financial Institution was providing inadequate extrinsic motivation, which was not in sync with the ‘young aged’ employee base it had. Most of the participants were in agreement that inadequate motivational factors were responsible for poor job performance. The research showed that inadequate salary and other motivational factors like quality of work life, promotion, supervision, and teamwork lead to counterproductive work behaviour. However, respondents also highlighted that indirect remuneration was being used to ensure adequacy of extrinsic motivational factors and there were efforts to provide housing to the employees in the Financial Institution. The factors responsible for employee demotivation included lack of organisational capacity to provide adequate extrinsic motivational factors. In addition, ineffective performance appraisal systems were a challenge being faced by most banks. The study recommended that the leadership in the financial institutions needed to be aware of the needs of the junior employees and be able to meet those needs. Provision of indirect remuneration could help in motivating the junior employees. There was also need to have ethical codes of conduct to prevent counterproductive work behaviour like absenteeism, lateness, job turnover, loafing, anti-social behaviour, and theft/fraud. Financial Institutions needed to provide equitable remuneration, and training and development of the employees.

Urban Congestion and Pollution: A Quest for Cogent Solutions for Accra City

Transportation plays instrumental role in the socio-economic development. Road transport is such vital sector which contributes significantly to the growth of many economies. Efficient, affordable, reliable and safe transport system is the most desirable and suitable form of transportation system required to facilitate development. Accra, the capital city of Ghana in West Africa is engulfed with traffic congestion. Accra has the highest motorization rate in the entire country, however, road infrastructure in the city is woefully inadequate. Rapid population growth attributable to rural-urban migration has exacerbated the demand for transportation services. The city contributes a quarter of the total gross domestic product of Ghana and attracts overwhelming 83% of all direct foreign investments (DFI) in the whole country. The projected population growth is 2.4% per annum from 2016 to 2030, a rise from the 2.0% between 2000 to 2016. Carbon dioxide emissions increased by a whopping 285.71% between 1990 to 2012. Annual mean particulate matter (PM2.5) µg m−3 score for Accra is 31.1 µg m−3. Nearly 3000 deaths are recorded annually in Accra attributable to outdoor air pollution related ailments. Traffic congestion in Accra could be significantly reduced through array of potential solutions such as transportation sector policy reforms to incorporate smart and intelligent transportation systems, expansion of road network through adequate investment in infrastructure, strict compliance and enforcement of traffic regulations.

Making a Case for Infection Control at Public Places of Convenience in Accra, Ghana.

In Ghana, environmental hygiene remains a major problem and infection control measures are hardly practised, particularly outside of the hospital. To provide evidence for infection control measures at public places of convenience in Accra (capital city of Ghana), this study was performed. The aim of the study was to evaluate microbial contamination of door handles at public places of convenience in Accra and assess the public health risk. A total of 183 swab specimens were collected aseptically from door handles of public places of convenience of shops, schools, hospitals, lorry stations, churches, and markets. The samples were cultured on bacteriological media, and the isolated organisms were identified. The most prevalent bacterial agent isolated was Bacillus spp. (55.7%), followed by Staphylococcus aureus (20.2%), coagulase-negative staphylococcus spp. (17.1%), Citrobacter freundii (6.0%), Citrobacter koseri (4.4%), and Salmonella Paratyphi A (3.8%). Although in low prevalence, a wide range of enteric bacteria were isolated from door handles, accounting for 12 of the 16 isolated organisms. In conclusion, door handles of places of convenience in Accra harbour several pathogenic microorganisms, especially enteric organisms. This study highlights the need for proper disinfection of door handles of places of convenience in Accra as well as handwashing after visiting such places.

Waste management practices of small hotels in Accra: An application of the waste management hierarchy model

One of the most visible impacts of hotels on the environment is waste. Waste generated by hotels tends to have adverse impacts on the environment. There are, therefore, concerns that the proliferation of small hotels in Accra, the capital city of Ghana, could have adverse impacts on the environment since small hotels have been found to take little action to address their environmental impacts. This paper examines the waste management practices of small hotels in Accra, based on the Waste Management Hierarchy (WMH) model. A survey of 260 managers of small hotels in various parts of Accra was undertaken, employing the simple random sampling method. Results of the study indicate that waste management practices of hotels did not strictly adhere to the WMH model. Waste disposal, prevention and reduction practices were the most frequently undertaken whilst practices relating to reuse, recycling and recovery were less frequently undertaken. It is recommended that the hotels should employ the sufficiency approach by positively influencing the attitudes of employees and guests toward waste prevention and reduction.

Microbial assessment of plastic bottles reused for packaging food products in Ghana

Patronage of bottled water in Ghana has increased over the years as a more hygienic source of drinking water. This shift has however resulted in increased generation of waste bottles without any formal regulated management system to handle them sustainably. This has encouraged an informal system which involves the retrieval and reuse of the bottles by market women and small scale local beverage producers for the sale of products such as palm oil, mashed kenkey and hibiscus tea (“sobolo”). The reuse of these bottles for food products for public consumption without any regulated means of sanitizing them is an issue of public health concern. This study therefore sought to determine the level of microbial contamination in used bottles sold in the three major markets (Makola, Kaneshie and Madina) in the capital city of Ghana, Accra to ascertain their safety for use for food products. The results showed presence of Total Coliforms and Faecal Coliforms in more than 60.0% and 40.0% of the bottles respectively. The bottles washed by the vendors recorded higher presence of Total Coliforms (65.3%) and Faecal Coliforms (57.3%) than the unwashed ones (49.3%) and (36.0%) respectively. This could be attributed to poor water quality used in washing the bottles, cross contamination from washing equipment, poor washing technique/procedure and improper storage. The continued reuse of bottles for food products therefore presents a serious public health problem. There is the urgent need for strict enforcement of food safety regulations in Ghana to ensure that packaging materials used by food vendors as well as the mode of treating these materials meet standards that safeguard public health.

Water Brokers: Exploring Urban Water Governance through the Practices of Tanker Water Supply in Accra

Accra, the capital city of Ghana, is characterized by limited networked supply, heterogeneous water providers, and various forms of provision. In this paper, we explore how the people delivering water through water tankers shape the distribution of water across the city. Drawing on empirical descriptions of water sourcing and distribution by truck drivers, we show that who gets what water at what price is shaped by the ability of tanker drivers to act as brokers, piecing together various social and material arrangements and resorting to different rationalities and expertise. We analyze how state actors deal with tanker supply seeking to reconcile their mandates with the realities of water supply. Analyzing urban water supply through the practices of water distribution, we show the messy and open-ended character of water governance processes. A practice-based approach makes the complex interrelations between different water providers across the city visible, and underscores the role of individual and collective identities, emotions, moral norms, and unequal interdependencies between actors in shaping urban water distributions.

Relationship Marketing, Orientation, Brand Equity and Firm Value: The Mediating Role of Customer Value—An Emerging Market Perspective

This study investigates how customer value mediates the relationship between relationship marketing and firm value, and how brand equity mediates the relationship between relationship marketing and firm value in the telecommunications industry in Ghana. A quantitative research design was adopted. Data were collected from 1,000 customers from four main telecommunications companies in Accra, the capital city of Ghana. Structural equation modelling was used to analyze the relationship among the variables. The findings demonstrate that all five dimensions of RM—trust, empathy, shared value, communication, and bonding—have a significant positive influence on brand equity. The test further revealed that brand equity significantly leads to firm value and customer value. The research findings indicate that the relationship marketing concept and brand equity can be used to improve customer value and firm value issues in the telecommunications industry in Ghana. Moreover, the study revealed the usefulness of brand equity scales adopted in evaluating context-specific issues as exist in the telephony industry. The findings also indicate that customer value partially mediates firm value and brand equity. The study shows that brand equity components have varying mediating effects on firm value.

The Effect of Service Quality on Customer Satisfaction and Loyal in the Restaurant Sector.

This study examined the effect of service quality on customer satisfaction and loyalty in the restaurant sector. Convenience sampling method was used to select 152 respondents and two restaurants located in Accra, the capital city of Ghana. Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) was used to analyse the data. The study revealed that all the service quality dimensions (reliability, assurance, empathy, tangibility and responsiveness) have a strong influence on customer satisfaction. When customers are satisfied with quality of services, they will be loyal. Among the service quality dimensions, assurance had the strongest influence on customer satisfaction, followed by empathy. This study therefore recommends that service providers in the restaurant sector periodically train their employees on good customer relationship management in order to deliver quality restaurant services to delight customers.

Pre-Marital Counselling and Sustainability of Marriages in Contemporary Ghanaian Society

Marriages in Ghana are usually preceded by counseling. It is believed that premarital counseling helps to sustain marriages because it gives couples the initial skills needed to enable them to start their marriage and solve minor problems that may be encountered in the relationship. This study was aimed at assessing the significance of premarital counseling to the sustenance of marriage. The study adopted a mixed methodological approach in gathering the data. Data was gathered from 112 individuals from three different suburbs of the capital city of Ghana. The results showed that although pre-marital counseling was observed to be important for would-be couples, it does not help sustain all marriages. Married couples that were given pre-marital counseling were getting separated as well as those who never had pre-marital counseling. It is therefore recommended that although premarital counseling may be necessary, it is not sufficient to sustain marriages. Therefore, counseling should continue even after marriage.

Urbanization and disaster in Accra, Ghana. Does human life matters?

This article discusses urbanization and disaster in the capital city of Ghana - Accra. Urbanization refers to the population shift from rural to urban residency, the gradual increase in the proportion of people living in urban areas, and the ways in which each society adapts to this change. It is predominantly the process by which towns and cities are formed and become larger as more people begin living and working in central areas. Urbanization has its own good and evil. In spite of the positive effect of urbanization, in Ghana one can conclude that urbanization has done more harm than good. This article reveals some catastrophic effects of urbanization and suggested solutions.

Occurrence of Antibiotic Residues and Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria in Nile Tilapia Sold in Some Markets in Accra, Ghana: Public Health Implication

In Ghana there are concerns that antibiotics may be used inappropriately to boost fish production, though no study has investigated this problem. To provide preliminary insights into public health aspects of the problem, we investigated the occurrence of antibiotic residues and antibiotic-resistant bacteria in Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), a fish commonly cultivated and consumed in Ghana. Two hundred Nile Tilapia fish were randomly sampled from four major markets in Accra, the capital city of Ghana. One hundred samples were screened for antibiotic residues using a microbial inhibition plate test that detects sixteen different antibiotics commonly used in animal husbandry and aquaculture. The other 100 samples were cultured for bacteria using direct culture methods, and the isolates were tested against seven antibiotics by the Kirby Bauer method. The overall prevalence of antibiotic residues in the fish samples was 7%. Bacteria that were isolated from the fish samples were Shigella sonnei (10%), Enterobacter cloacae (7%), Escherichia coli (6%), Salmonella Typhi (3%) and Klebsiella pneumoniae and Proteus mirabilis (2%). All bacteria isolated were susceptible to gentamicin and ciprofloxacin but resistant to ampicillin. Multi-drug resistance (ie resistance to three or more different classes of antibiotics) occurred in 86.7% of the isolates. Nile Tilapia sold in Accra is a source of multi-drug resistant bacteria. Consumption of the fish can also lead to significant exposure to antibiotic residues.

Please, thank you and sorry – brokering migration and constructing identities for domestic work in Ghana

ABSTRACTDrawing on interviews with migrant domestic workers and brokers in Accra-Tema, the capital city of Ghana, this paper throws light on the everyday practices of brokers in producing ideal workers for urban middle class and expatriate families as well as overseas employment. The authors map the different kinds of brokers who are involved in the selection and placement of domestic workers and show how they filter and represent workers to potential employers. Women and girls from the poorer north and Volta regions are positioned into precarious employment with an ever-present risk of abuse, non-payment and sexual exploitation. In the absence of effective state protection these workers depend heavily on brokers for negotiating better working conditions and switching jobs if they are in a difficult position. By examining such dynamics the authors demonstrate how the process of brokerage itself offers these workers opportunities for exercising agency that have the potential of setting them on an upward path. The authors conclude with calls for a more nuanced and differentiated understanding of the role and the practices of brokers to better inform Ghana’s efforts to minimise exploitation of domestic workers.

Post Abortion Contraception Model: A Comprehensive Package for Improving Safe Abortion Care in Developing Countries

Background: Despite liberal abortion laws and wide availability of contraceptives in Ghana, declining Post Abortion Contraception remains a public health challenge due to early unplanned pregnancies and recurrent abortions. The development of this model was therefore to address challenges of low contraception following induced abortion in health facilities within the capital city of Ghana. Method: The development of this model was an outcome of a nested study title: ‘decision making for induced abortion in Accra metropolis, Ghana’ in 2014. This model was piloted for four years using Marie Stopes, Ipas and Ghana Health Service trained abortion providers with family planning skills in one hundred purposively selected health facilities comprising 90 private and 10 Non-Governmental Organization mandated by law to provide safe abortion care services in the capital city of Ghana. The model mainly focused on contraceptive products, pricing, placement, promotion and people. Results: There was an increase (90% average) in Post Abortion Contraception across the selected facilities following the intervention using the model. Conclusion: The study concludes that an integration of products, pricing, placement, promotion and people with options counselling prior to an induced abortion are key considerations for an improved post abortion contraception uptake in developing countries.

Assessment of the Sustainability of Accra Metropolitan Area, Ghana

Cities have become integral in the quest to achieving universal sustainable development. For example, the United Nations in 2015 as part of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals called for cities and human settlements to be inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable (Goal 11). This was in line with the 2012 National Urban Policy of Ghana which seeks to promote a sustainable, spatially integrated and orderly development of urban settlements with adequate housing, infra-structure and services, efficient institutions, and a sound living and working environment for all people to support the rapid socioeconomic development of Ghana. Six years into the imple-mentation of the National Urban Policy by the government, what is the sustainability status of the Ghanaian city? The aim of this study was to comprehensively evaluate the sustainability status of Accra Metropolitan Area, the capital city of Ghana. The study adopted a set of city sustainability indicators that revealed the weak and strong points of Accra metropolis. Forty-one Accra Sustainability Indicators were defined and classified into Economic, Environment, Social and Institutional (local governance) dimensions. The evaluation was for a period of 4 years, (2012 to 2015) during which the 2012 Urban Policy and its action plan were being implemented. Ques-tionnaires were developed based on the indicators and administered to stakeholders. The quanti-tative data collected was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) and Microsoft Excel. The results showed Accra’s economic dimension approaching sustainability while environmental and institutional dimensions performed poorly. The social dimension, thoughperformed below average, rose marginally over the period. Overall sustainability index of Accra was below average and showed a progression towards sustainability over the last 4 years, rising from 0.48 in 2012 to 0.51 in 2015. The findings of this study are helpful to local authorities for sustainable city planning and management.

Inclusion of men in maternal and safe motherhood services in inner-city communities in Ghana: evidence from a descriptive cross-sectional survey

BackgroundThere has been a growing realisation of the need to enhance men’s inclusion in maternal and safe motherhood services, especially in low-income settings. However, empirical studies on the extent to which men are involved in maternal and safe motherhood services especially in poor inner-city communities are lacking. The purpose of this study was to describe the level of men’s inclusion in maternal and safe-motherhood services in inner-city communities in Ghana, and to assess the barriers of men’s involvement.MethodsA descriptive cross-sectional quantitative survey was conducted among a total of 256 randomly selected adult men in Chorkor, an inner-city fishing community in Accra, the capital city of Ghana. A multistage sampling strategy was used to select houses, households and respondents. Descriptive statistical techniques were used to analyse the data. Data analysis was done with the aid of SPSS version 20.ResultsAlthough almost all (96.6%) respondents knew the meaning of family planning, as high as 236(92.2%) have never accompanied their wives/partners to clinics to seek family planning services. Also 242(94.5%) and 251(98%) of men, respectively, knew the importance of antenatal services and supervised delivery. However, only 114(44.5%) of men ever accompanied their wives/partners to seek skilled delivery services. Men’s involvement was hindered by barriers such as attitude of health workers, long waiting time and socio-cultural beliefs.ConclusionThe study revealed a gap between men’s awareness of the importance of maternal and safe motherhood services and their actual involvement in accessing these services with their female partners. There is a need to create a supportive environment that encourages men to be involved in maternal health services to help reduce maternal/neonatal morbidity and mortality.

Investigating market orientation and positioning in star-rated hotels in Ghana

PurposeMarket orientation and positioning have been widely recognized as organizational metrics linked to hotel performance. The purpose of this study is to offer the link among market orientation, positioning and hotel performance in Ghana’s (luxury) hotel sector. It also reports on the joint influence of market orientation and positioning on hotel performance in the same sector.Design/methodology/approachThree hypotheses were investigated on the link between market orientation and hotel performance, positioning and hotel performance, and the joint effect of market orientation and positioning on hotel performance. A survey of star-rated (luxury) hotels in the capital city of Ghana was used. One hundred and five responses were used in the analysis. Descriptive statistics, exploratory factor analysis and hierarchical regression were used to test the three hypotheses.FindingsAll hypotheses were accepted. Market orientation and positioning jointly affect hotel performance, and the study provides hotel managers with suggestions on how to enhance their performance via market orientation and positioning.Research limitations/implicationsMarket orientation, positioning, and performance measures focused on management perspectives without including perceptions of customers.Originality/valueThis study is one of the few attempts to systematically investigate the intertwined concepts of market orientation, positioning and performance in a developing economy hospitality context.

Ergonomics assessment of locally fabricated passenger seats in trotro vehicles in Accra, Ghana

Abstract Trotro vehicles constitute one of the major means of transportation in Ghana by way of ferrying people and goods. Most trotros are originally brought into the country as load carrying vehicles, which are then converted into passenger vehicles. Locally designed seats are then fabricated and secured into the vehicles. The study explored the ergonomic evaluation of the locally fabricated passenger seats with anthropometric measures of passengers and also compared the seat dimensions to required standards. The study was undertaken at seven selected bus stations in Accra, the capital city of Ghana. The study composed of 307 volunteer passengers comprising 175 females and 132 males with ages spanning from 18 to 60 years. The dimensions of ninety locally fabricated seats were collected from ninety randomly selected trotro vehicles. Ergonomic assessment was performed to determine match or mismatch between the anthropometric measures and vehicle seating dimensions. In addition, the fabricated seat dimensions were compared to both local and international vehicle seat standards. High mismatches indicating that the passenger seats were probably too deep or too high were observed for seat height – popliteal height, seat depth – buttock popliteal length, and seat breadth – hip breadth. A low mismatch was observed between the sitting height and backrest height for 99.4% of participants. Only four and ten out of the ninety seats complied with specified standard seat length and backrest to backrest distance, respectively. The high prevalence of mismatch is a possible indication that most locally fabricated seats do not adequately accommodate majority of passengers. Furthermore, it appears that anthropometric measures and standard vehicle seat dimensions are not considered during seat design, with potential health ramifications pertaining to the safety, comfort and sitting posture of passengers.

Detection of a novel putative phlebovirus and first isolation of Dugbe virus from ticks in Accra, Ghana

Ticks are ectoparasites that transmit various types of human and animal pathogens. In particular, emerging and re-emerging diseases caused by tick-borne viruses are public health concerns around the world. However, in many countries of the sub-Saharan African region, epidemiological information on tick-borne viral infections is limited, and their prevalence and distribution remain largely unknown. In this study, we conducted surveillance on ticks to detect medically important tick-borne bunyaviruses in three study sites in and near to Accra, the capital city of Ghana, in 2015. Domestic dogs and cattle were surveyed and were found to be infested with various tick species belonging to the genera Rhipicephalus, Amblyomma and Haemaphysalis. Importantly, we detected a novel putative phlebovirus in Rhipicephalus ticks, and successfully isolated a new strain of Dugbe virus from Am. variegatum ticks. To our knowledge, this is the first report of tick-associated viruses in Ghana other than Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus.

Perception and responses of traders to climate change in downtown, Accra, Ghana

PurposeWhat people understand by climate change can differ depending on whether and how the change affects their livelihoods. It is largely documented that farmers who depend on rainfall to cultivate crops understand climate change as a change in climatic elements, especially rainfall which negatively affects crop production. However, studies on how people whose livelihoods do not directly depend on climate change understand it, whether and how the changes affect their livelihoods and whether and how they are coping to the change are limited in the literature. This paper aims to therefore determine perspective of traders of climate change and how they cope.Design/methodology/approachThe data collection took place in Accra, which is the capital city of Ghana. Thousand traders who sold unprocessed and processed food as well as manufactured goods took part in the study. Questionnaires which were largely open-ended were administered. SPSS version 16 was used to analyse the data. In addition, some of the interview responses were included verbatim to support study participants view on some issues.FindingsThe majority of the respondents engaged in trading of manufactured goods. The respondents understood climate change as prolonged dry season and changes in rainfall pattern. About 97 per cent of the respondents said climate change had negatively impacted their trading activities, and almost all respondents (91 per cent) who were affected by climate change livelihoods were also affected such that they were unable to meet their basic needs. About 23 per cent have adopted coping strategies by depending on friends, relatives and engaging in menial jobs, and 63 per cent adopted no coping strategy.Originality/valueIt seems that rural farmers may have more options than urban traders during climate change. This can mean that research and policy efforts towards adaption to climate change should not focus only on farmers but traders as well.