Browsing by Author "Omari, S."
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Item The study of bacterial contamination of drinking water sources: A case study of Mpraeso, Ghana(Internet Journal of Microbiology, 2012-01) Omari, S.; Yeboah-Manu, D.The study aimed at determining the presence, type, count and causes of bacterial contamination of water used for drinking and other domestic purposes in Mpraeso. Fifty-four (54) water samples (48 from 8 groundwater wells and 6 from a stream) were collected and analyzed for six months (both during the dry and raining seasons). The results showed that groundwater sources were as polluted as surface water. The detection of bacterial cells in the water sources means that some forms of treatment needed to be done before consumption. The mean count of total coliform and faecal coliform ranged from 299 - 2267 MPN colonies/100 ml water sample and 111 - 1235 MPN colonies/100 ml water sample, respectively. For the groundwater sources, the enterobacteriaceae species detected were Escherichia coli (8 wells), Enterococcus faecalis (8 wells), Klebsiella pneumoniae (6 wells), Enterobacter cloacae (5), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (3), and Proteus mirabilis (3). All these bacterial species were detected in the surface water samples. © Internet Scientific Publications, LLC., 1996 - 2013.Item Viewing gender through the eyes of proverbs: Reflections of gender ideology in the Akan and Swahili societies(Journal of Pragmatics, 2021) Dzahene-Quarshie, J.; Omari, S.In this study, we compare gendered proverbs in the Akan society of Ghana and Swahili society of Tanzania, focusing on convergences and divergences in their worldviews on conceptualisation of gender roles and functions. Our analyses of data from written and oral sources within the theoretical concepts of gender ideology and intertextuality establish that largely, gendered proverbs in Akan and Swahili are convergent and express similar gender ideologies. Gendered proverbs in the two societies typically refer to females, and even when they mention males, they often critically expose the subjugation of women in relation to male superiority. The main divergent feature between gendered proverbs in Akan and Swahili societies is the perception of females as sex objects and the use of explicit expressions of sex organs and sexual acts by Akan proverbs. In contrast, Swahili gendered proverbs rarely address sexuality, and when they do, they do so discreetly by implication.Item Vulnerability and Adaptation of Farming Households to Climatic and Non-Climatic Stressors in Semi-Arid Ghana(University of Ghana, 2018-07) Omari, S.Since the latter part of the 20th Century to date, climate change has received considerable global attention due to its threats on all sectors of the global economy, particularly agriculture. Sub-Saharan Africa, for which Ghana is part, is considered as most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and variability due to its low adaptive capacity and dependent on predominantly rain-fed agriculture. Farmers in Ghana and beyond are not only prone to climatic stressors but also to non-climatic stressors. Studies have been conducted across a range of geographical settings about how climate change adversely affect the activities of farming households. Though insightful, there are, however, few examples of how climatic and non-climatic stressors influence vulnerability and adaptation decisions of farming households. Using the Lawra District in northwest Ghana, this thesis examines the vulnerability and adaptation of farming households and communities to climatic and non-climatic stressors. The study employs both quantitative and qualitative approach, including semi-structured questionnaire interviews, participatory methods, expert interviews, meteorological information and soil samples to explore the wide range of stressors shaping the activities of farming households in the district. The results demonstrate that, without prompting, farmers cited a range of climatic and non-climatic conditions that affect farming and household activities. Male and female farmers differ in their perception of the severity of perceived stressors, and this is likely to affect their adaptation decisions. The results also demonstrate that farmers know the causes and the effects of the stressors they cited. The results, further, show that scientific information did not always support farmers' perception of climate change. The results from the vulnerability assessment reveal households within and across communities differ in their vulnerabilities to climatic and non-climatic stressors. The results reveal that the farmers utilised various adaptation strategies contingent on the perception of climatic and non-climatic stressors and that the effects of climate change may not be the reason why farmers utilised certain adaptation strategies. Using binary logistic regression, the results reveal that membership of a social group, use of fertiliser, crop diversity and communication diversity are key determinants of farmers’ adaptation to non-climatic stressors and that the same, as well as age, determine adaptation to climatic stressors. The results indicate that farmers’ adaptation to climate change is not in isolation from institutional supports. The farmers’ ability to adapt to climate change is also tied to supports from traditional authority, extended family system, friendship, community and governmental and non-governmental institutions. The study recommends that governmental and non-governmental institutions should invest in agricultural as well as non-agricultural activities to improve the socio-economic state of the farmers. Policymakers need to formulate adaptation policies that target both climatic and non-climatic stressors and that such policies should also consider the vulnerability of men as well. Formal and informal institutions should work synergistically, through programmes, to enhance natural, human, social, financial and physical capitals of farmers.