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UGSpace is the institutional repository of the University of Ghana. UGSpace is an open access electronic archive for the collection, preservation and distribution of digital materials to:
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- Review books or articles provide a critical and constructive analysis of existing published literature in a field, through summary, analysis, and comparison, often identifying specific gaps or problems and providing recommendations for future research. These are considered as secondary literature since they generally do not present new data from the author's experimental work. Review articles can be of three types, broadly speaking: literature reviews, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses. It also the researcher to stay abreast of new literature in the field.
- Grey literature consists of research and information produced outside conventional publishing channels, such as reports, policy briefs, working papers, and conference materials. It offers valuable insights and data that complement peer-reviewed sources, supporting research, policy, and practice.
- The J. H. Kwabena Nketia Archives preserve Ghanaian and African cultural heritage through music, oral traditions, photographs, and audiovisual collections. Guided by Professor Nketia’s vision that African traditional arts must be collected, preserved, practiced, and continually inspire creative expression, the Archives serve as a living resource for scholarship, teaching, and innovation
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Item type:Item, Access status: Open Access , Impact of Producer Price-Related Reforms on the Cocoa Sector of Ghana from 1920 TO 2022(University of Ghana, 2024) Adjei, K.D.Ghana’s cocoa industry has been the backbone of its agricultural economy for more than a century, providing employment, foreign exchange, and rural livelihoods. This study assesses the impact of producer price-related reforms on Ghana's cocoa sector, focusing on their influence on farmers' producer prices, the proportion of free-on-board (FOB) prices paid to farmers, price volatility, and cocoa output. This study provides critical insights into the dynamics of producer price reforms and their implications for policy and cocoa sector sustainability. Using annual data from 1920 to 2022, the analysis spans nine reform periods: the Colonial and free market era (1920-1946), the Cocoa Marketing Board (CMB) (1947 1951), Pre-Republic era (1952-1956), Nkrumah era (1957-1965), Downturn era (1966-1983), average production cost (COP) era (1984-1997), Negotiation era (1998-2000), Net FOB era(2001-2018) and the LID era (2019-2022). Data analysis employed R, Gauss, Gretl, and Microfit software, utilizing Bayesian structural time series for causal impact assessment, the Relative Price Index (RPI) for FOB price proportion, adjusted absolute mean deviation (AMAD) for price volatility, and the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model for long run effects on cocoa output. The results show that market-oriented reforms yielded the strongest price incentives. The RPI, representing the farmers’ share of the export price, averaged 65.23% during the Colonial era, 49.01% under the Cocoa Marketing Board (CMB) era, 50.19% in the Pre-Republic era, 64.59% during the Nkrumah era, 66.21% in the “Downturn” era, 49.92% in the Cost of Production (COP) era, 82.08% under the Negotiation era, 65.81% during the Net FOB era, and 72.71% during the Living Income Differential (LID) era. These figures indicate a general improvement in the farmers’ share of export earnings over time, particularly under liberalised and negotiated pricing mechanisms. Causal impact analysis further revealed that producer prices increased by 4.6% during the Negotiation reform, 7.2% under the Net FOB reform, and only 0.66% during the LID era, suggesting that recent reforms have had limited effectiveness despite pro-poor intentions. Volatility analysis showed that price instability was highest during the Colonial and CMB eras (ranging between 40-70%) and lowest during the Net FOB and COP reforms (8.46% and 28.04%, respectively), highlighting the stabilising effects of reforms that aligned domestic pricing with global market mechanisms. The long-run ARDL estimates confirmed that Ghana’s cocoa supply remains price-inelastic, with a producer price elasticity of 0.259 (p = 0.069), implying that a 1% increase in the real producer price raises cocoa output by just 0.26%. Rainfall (2.238; p = 0.022) exerted the strongest positive long-run effect, underscoring the dependence of production on climatic conditions. The trend coefficient (0.018; p = 0.000) suggests a gradual productivity gain over time. Among reform dummies, the Nkrumah era (0.473; p = 0.037) had a significant positive long-run impact, attributed to state investment in farm rehabilitation, extension services, and cooperative development. In contrast, the CMB (−0.254) and LID (−0.464) periods exhibited negative coefficients, implying weaker output responses under excessive central control and no policy transmission. The El Niño variable (−0.524; p = 0.051) revealed a dampening effect on output, highlighting Ghana’s vulnerability to extreme weather. Cocobod should enhance the role of producer organizations, cooperatives, and civil society in price determination and promoting local value addition and processing. National regulators should undertake a comprehensive review of existing pricing arrangements along the cocoa value chain to identify inefficiencies and areas of rent loss. Also, attention should be given to the forward sales system, which determines export prices and indirectly influences farmgate prices. By revisiting this mechanism could help ensure that producers capture a greater share of the global cocoa price and benefit more directly from price upswings.Item type:Item, Access status: Open Access , Eating Patterns and Nutritional Status of Students of Takoradi Technical University in Ghana(University of Ghana, 2024) Kwofie, R.This thesis assessed the eating patterns and nutritional status of students of Takoradi Technical University in Ghana. The study utilized a quantitative approach, employing a cross-sectional design, proportionate sampling technique to select 425 Bachelor of Technology (BTECH) students from all the Faculties at the Takoradi Technical University. The objectives of the study were to identify the eating patterns of students at Takoradi Technical University in Ghana, assess the nutritional status of the students, determine the factors influencing their eating patterns and explore challenges associated with their eating patterns. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire and analysed using the SPSS version 26. The findings of the study indicated that students had diverse food preferences, including citrus fruits, tea, corn porridge, peanut butter, and white bread with regards to their eating patterns. Taste, culture, nutrition, convenience, and affordability influenced their choices. Concerns about meal skipping, overweight/obesity, and nutritional deficiencies were also identified. Challenges in adopting healthier habits included convenience, time, finance, and irregular schedules. The study's exploration of eating patterns, demographic factors, including age, level of study, gender, and residential status, had an influence in relation to students’ nutritional status. Recommendations include nutrition education, improving campus food options, promoting meal planning, integrating physical activity, and providing support for financially challenged students.Item type:Item, Access status: Open Access , Estimating Global Cost Frontier Shift and Global Cost Malmquist Indices of Firms: An Application to Ghanaian Banks(University of Ghana, 2024) Wayem, F.This study proposes a novel Global Cost Malmquist Index (GCMI) to assess productivity changes for firms, incorporating both cost efficiency and technological change from a global perspective. The GCMI extends existing productivity measures by considering cost factors and providing a comprehensive view across all firms and time periods. Applied to the Ghanaian banking sector from 2000 to 2022, the GCMI revealed an average annual productivity decline of 5.5%. This decline can be attributed to regulatory reforms, economic instability, the financial sector clean-up, and global events like the 2008 financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic. The comparative analysis demonstrated the GCMI's superior sensitivity to short-term productivity shifts compared to existing cost measures. This research contributes to productivity measurement literature and provides valuable insights for policymakers and bank managers in developing economies. The GCMI offers a more nuanced understanding of banking sector performance, enabling more informed decision making and targeted interventions to enhance productivity and competitiveness.Item type:Item, Access status: Open Access , Quality Healthcare Delivery and Patients Satisfaction at Akuse Government Hospital in the Eastern Region of Ghana(University of Ghana, 2024) Peprah, Y. B.Background Q Improving health-care delivery demands a deliberate focus on service quality, which entails providing effective, safe, and people-centered care that is timely, equitable, integrated, and efficient. The degree to which health services for individuals and populations increase the likelihood of desired health outcomes is referred to as quality of care. It is essential for achieving universal health coverage since it is based on evidence-based professional expertise. Objectives The general objective of this study was to assess factors influencing patients’ satisfaction with the quality of health care delivery at Akuse Government Hospital. Methods A facility-based cross-sectional study design using a quantitative research method was adopted for the study. Cluster sampling and proportional stratified sampling was used to select 336 patients attending clinic at Akuse Government hospital in the Eastern Region. A structured questionnaire was used as the data collection tool. Stata software version 16 was used to analyze the data collected. Descriptive statistics such as frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviations, and 95% CI were computed for the various variables. Bivariate analysis using the Chi-square test was performed to test the associations between independent variables and patient satisfaction. Multiple logistic regression analysis was carried out on all related independent factors at the multivariate level. Crude Odds Ratio(cOR) and Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) were computed, and statistical significance was accepted at p < 0.05. Results The results of this study showed that the overall estimated proportion of patients with high satisfaction with Quality Healthcare Delivery at Akuse Government Hospital was 84.2%. The educational level (AOR=1.29;95%CI=1.644-5.594, p=0.038), insurance status (AOR = 0.56;95% CI=0.279-0.739, p=0.019), employment status (AOR = 0.20; 95% CI=0.097-0.423, p=0.001), availability of equipment (AOR = 2.47; 95% CI=1.721-3.016, p=0.025), availability of drugs (AOR=2.26;95%CI=1.607-2.648,p=0.032),environmentalcleanliness (AOR=4.32;95%CI=2.178- 8.606, p=0.001) were the factors found to be significantly associated with patients’ satisfaction with Quality Healthcare Delivery at Akuse Government hospital. Conclusion The study revealed that the proportion of patients satisfied with Quality Healthcare Delivery at Akuse Government Hospital was high. Educational level, employment status, insurance status, availability of drugs, availability of equipment and environmental cleanliness were the factors found to be significantly associated with patients’ satisfaction with quality health care delivery. The high level of patient’s satisfaction recorded in this study could be attributed to the availability of drugs, availability of laboratory equipment and the use of National Health Insurance in the facility.Item type:Item, Access status: Open Access , Digitising Public Relations Practice: A Content Analysis of the Twitter Pages of Selected Organisations in Ghana(University of Ghana, 2025) Dusu, K.This study was conducted to examine how organisations in Ghana used Twitter as a public relations medium to interact with their stakeholders. The primary focus of the study was to analyse how Twitter posts conformed to the relationship indicators propounded by Hon and Grunig (1999) as well as Grunig and Hunt's (1984) public relations models. The study employed both qualitative and quantitative content analysis to gather and analyse the tweets of TV3, Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC), Consolidated Bank Ghana and Fidelity Bank on their respective Twitter accounts. Guided by Hon and Grunig's (1999) relationship indicators and the two models of Grunig and Hunt (1984), the study revealed that the organisations engaged in interactive activities such as posting original tweets, retweeting other Twitter account users' posts or the organisations' past posts, and replying to other account users' tweets. The study also discovered that Twitter posts promoted some aspects of Grunig and Hunt's (1984) theoretical models. The majority of the organisations' tweets depicted press agentry and public information models. Moreover, the Twitter posts of the organisations also reflected Hon and Grunig's (1999) relationship indicators. The wordings employed in the text, the images and the videos posted carried meanings that were associated with at least one of the relationship indicators. The majority of the organisations' tweets conformed to control mutuality, commitment, exchange relationship and communal relationship.