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Item Assessing the Scope of Impact, Impact Measures and Factors Influencing Social Enterprise Impact Measure Selection across Africa(Journal of Advocacy, Research and Education, 2020) Adomdza, G.K.; Asiedu, M.; Lartey, A.S.D.; Lawal, A.B.Social enterprises have been identified as one of the ways of tackling some of the most challenging social problems around the globe. Despite, being touted as indispensable to the developmental agenda of most developing economies, especially across Africa, very little effort has been made to understand the scope of impact and impact assessment measures adopted to evaluate the activities in the space in the continent. The current study is an inquiry into the mechanisms adopted by SEs in their impact assessments within Africa. Additionally, the research focuses on the scope of the impact of SEs across the continent. The results revealed an imbalance in the use of the two categories of impact measures; “individual-based impact measures” and “non-financial impact measures”. SEs have relied more on “what we do” and numbers to justify their impact in several parts of the continent. Additionally, the research also revealed that some of the impact areas of SEs included poverty and inequality; education and technology; entertainment; child empowerment; girl and women empowerment; youth empowerment; and social welfare and disability. The research recommends that SEs should endeavor to measure their impact from a comprehensive perspective, to align their activities and measures to the broader national and/or global agenda.Item To leave or retain? An interplay between quality digital banking services and customer satisfaction(International Journal of Bank Marketing, 2021) Egala, S.B.; Mensah, S.A.; Boateng, D.Purpose – In this paper, the authors investigated the impact of quality digital banking services delivered during the COVID-19 pandemic on customers’ satisfaction and retention intentions. Design/methodology/approach – This study combined constructs drawn from the E-S-QUAL and BSQ models to measure the impact of digital banking services on subscribers of digital banking services in Ghana. The study utilized structural equation modeling with partial least squares (PLS-SEM) to analyze 395 responses. Findings – Results revealed a significant direct effect between digital banking services satisfaction and customer retention decisions. The results also revealed that digital banking service quality dimensions such as ease of use, efficiency, privacy/security, and reliability impact customers’ satisfaction and retention intentions. Research limitations/implications – Digital banking service portfolios and their quality dimensions vary among banks. This offers an opportunity for banking institutions and other non-bank financial service providers to be wary of the impact of quality service delivery on customers’ decisions. This paper makes significant theoretical contributions and practical implications on the relevance of quality digital banking services in customers’ retention strategies for competitive advantage. Originality/value – This study has underlined the significance of quality digital banking services in developing countries. The study underscored the need for banking and non-bank financial institutions to embrace the much-anticipated quality service demanded by customers and the need for continuous service improvement relative to the growing deployment of financial technologies.Item Reinsurance and Financial Performance of Non-life Insurance Companies in Ghana(Management and Labour Studies, 2021) Andoh, C.; Yamoah, S.A.The study examines how premiums ceded to a reinsurer affect the profitability of non-life insurance companies in Ghana. Secondary data on reinsurance ceded, combined ratio, assets, liabilities, and return on assets for 20 non-life insurance companies over the period 2008–2018 were sourced from the National Insurance Commission whilst interest and exchange rate variables were obtained from the Bank of Ghana. A panel regression model was employed for the analysis of the data collected. The results show that purchasing high levels of reinsurance alone does not affect the profitability of non-life insurance companies, but the combined effect of reinsurance and solvency ratio significantly impacts their profitability. Managers of non-life insurance companies in Ghana should increase their ability to repay all financial obligations in the short, medium, and long term in combination with reinsurance. This will enable insurers to stabilize growth, earn profits, and meet their obligations to policyholders in a timely fashion.Item Financial globalization and institutions in Africa: the case of foreign direct investment, central bank independence and political institutions(Journal of Institutional Economics, 2020) Agoba, A.M.; Agbloyor, E.; Gyeke-Dako, A.A.; et.alIn this paper, we examine the bi-directional relationship between financial globalization (proxied by foreign direct investment (FDI) flows) and economic institutions (proxied by central bank independence (CBI)) taking into consideration the role of political institutions. We test our argument on a sample of 48 African countries (1970–2012) using a two-step System Generalized Methods of Moments, with collapsed instruments and Windmeijer robust standard errors. Using two proxies for CBI, the study finds that while legal CBI does not have a significant impact on FDI, high central bank governor turnover rates have a significantly negative impact on FDI inflows. However, higher levels of political institutions significantly enhance the impact of legal CBI on FDI inflows, and dampen the impact of high central bank governor turnover rates on FDI inflows. The study also shows that higher FDI inflows have a significantly positive impact on both legal and de facto CBI. This impact is accelerated in countries characterized by higher levels of political institutions.Item Fiscal rules, fiscal performance and economic growth in Sub‐Saharan Africa(African Development Review, 2021) Nabieu, G.A.A.; Bokpin, G.A.; Osei, A.K.; Asuming, P.O.Over the past four decades, many economies have striven to find permanent solutions to persistent increases in public deficits and deterioration of growth. For most economies, the solution to this problem was the adoption of fiscal rules. This paper presents empirical evidence on the effects of fiscal rules on fiscal performance and economic growth using a dataset of 43 countries in Sub‐Saharan Africa over 27 years. The study applies simultaneous equation models to determine the relationship between performance and growth in the public sector and also to avoid structural equation and endogeneity biases. The results show that fiscal rules significantly foster fiscal performance and decelerate growth. The study further finds the expenditure rules to be most effective in influencing fiscal balance and economic growth. The robust estimates further confirm that expenditure rules and government spending efficiency are necessary for promoting fiscal outcomes and economic growth. The study recommends the implementation of more revenue rules, debt rules, and balance budget rules to ameliorate the negative effects of government spending on economic growth. In addition, Sub‐Saharan African economies should carefully consider the rules applied to government spending since fiscal rules on productive spending will impede economic growth.Item Occupational Health And Safety As A Predictor Of Commitment Among Workers In The Ghanaian Mining Sector(University Of Ghana, 2014) Muah, P.This study sought to examine and establish the relationship and effect of occupational health and safety on organizational commitment. First, it was proposed that occupational health and safety would have a positive relationship with affective, normative and continuance commitment. Next, job safety, co-worker safety, supervisor safety, safety programs and management safety practices were expected to predict affective, normative and continuance commitment. Descriptive, cross-sectional survey design was used and the sample on which conclusions were based consisted of 370 employees of the Ghanaian mining industry who were selected using simple random sampling method. OHS was measured using instrument develop by Hayes et.al, (1998). The survey instrument has five construct made up of job safety, co-worker safety, supervisor safety, safety programs and management safety practices. Also, organizational commitment was measured using commitment instrument developed by Allen and Meyer (1997) with three dimensions (affective, normative and continuance). Correlational and hierarchical regression analyses were used to test for proposed hypotheses. The correlational analysis showed a positive significant relationship between OHS and affective, normative and continuance commitment. Further the hierarchical regression showed that co-worker safety and management safety practices had a significant effect on affective, normative and continuance commitment. However, job safety, supervisor safety and safety programs did not predict affective, normative and continuance commitment. It was concluded that Management within the mining sector of Ghana must recognize the fact that workers who feel healthy and safe in the performance of their duties, develop emotional attachment and have a sense of obligation to their organization and are most likely to stay. Also invest in the protection of employees‘ health and safety on the job since that would improve employees‘ commitment to the organization.Item Conditionality, Citizenship And The Impact Of Cash Transfer Programmes In Ghana(University of Ghana, 2022-04) Kotey, R.N.Research on cash transfer programmes focuses on how they affect human capital development and poverty alleviation. It is well-established that people living in poverty face challenges that surpass their ability to meet their daily needs. Addressing challenges that meet the needs of people living in poverty is an effective way of improving the uptake of citizenship rights among them. This study aims to determine whether cash transfer programmes influence the uptake of citizenship rights among beneficiaries. In addition, the study investigates whether conditions attached to cash transfer programmes influence their beneficiaries' uptake of citizenship rights. It also looks at how local capacities support the implementation of conditional cash transfer programmes. Two cash transfer programmes, Ghana Luxembourg Social Trust (GLST) which strictly monitors and enforces its conditions and Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) which minimally monitors its conditions are tested for their influence on the uptake of citizenship rights among their beneficiaries. Shai-Osudoku and Ningo-Prampram Districts have been adopted as case studies for this study. The study used the concurrent mixed-methods approach involving the use of both quantitative and qualitative data collection methods. Data were analysed using contingency tables for the quantitative and thematic analysis for the qualitative study. Findings reveal that cash transfer programmes positively influence the uptake of citizenship rights. However, the dimensions of this influence differ or are similar depending on the contextual factors on the ground in Shai-Osudoku and Ningo-Prampram districts. Contextual factors include the level of education of people who are three years and older in the district, the level of poverty in the district and the number of persons per household in the district. The study also indicates that conditionality influences the uptake of human capital development activities and that local-level capacities must be taken into consideration when implementing a CCT programme. These findings reveal that strict monitoring and enforcement of conditions attached to cash transfer programme influence the uptake of citizenship rights by their beneficiaries better than minimal monitoring and enforcement. On this basis, the strict monitoring and enforcement of conditions should be taken into consideration when designing conditional cash transfer programme for effective behavioural changes among beneficiaries.Item Use Of Ridesharing Platforms In A Developing Country: A Boundary Object Theory Perspective(University of Ghana, 2022-11) Simmons, R.O.The purpose of this study is to understand the use of ridesharing platforms in a developing country. Ridesharing platforms have attracted many studies. A review of the studies suggests knowledge gaps which warrant research attention. First, the literature on ridesharing platform overlooks explaining the goals of actors on the platforms. Second, previous research also tends to be silent on explaining how the platforms enable or constrain the realisation of actors’ goals. This research gap can be addressed through a theoretical lens which exclusively accommodates both the social and technical aspects of ridesharing platforms. However, theoretical applications predominantly focus more on other phenomena such as agency theory for shared use of resources and platform theory for entry of ridesharing platform with less research attention on actors’ actions, interactions, and transactions across boundary objects (platforms). Thus, there is a need to use boundary object theory to understand actors’ activities across boundaries. Finally, extant research is silent on how contextual factors such as business climate and government regulations potentially influence ridesharing platforms use. Such knowledge is critical to a developing country context, as ridesharing platforms has received mixed reactions. To address the research gaps, this study, therefore, uses three questions, (1) Why do actors (drivers and riders) use ridesharing platforms? (2) How do ridesharing platforms enable or constrain the realisation of actors’ goals? (3) What contextual factors influence actors’ use of ridesharing platforms and the achievement of their goals? Responding to the research questions, this study employed the interpretivist research paradigm, the qualitative methodology, the case study method, and the boundary object theory to understand the use of ridesharing platforms in Ghana, a developing country in sub-Saharan Africa. Thus, the study seeks to explore the phenomenon for developing countries using Uber and Dropping ridesharing platform companies as case studies from Ghana. The cases were selected via theoretical sampling. The participants were also selected through snowballing and purposive sampling. The findings show that drivers use ridesharing platforms because of the following goals: linkage, flexibility, traffic update, unrestrictedness, and security. Riders also use ridesharing platforms because of the following goals: mobility, legitimacy, accountability, security, and convenience. The findings also show that drivers and riders have personal goals for using ridesharing platforms. Some drivers pursue personal goals to maximise revenue illegally such as accepting riders outside the platform. Some riders also pursue personal goals such as endangering drivers. Comparably the personal goals of riders tend to be more undesirable since drivers are endangered and violent crime is sometimes committed. Addressing these are critical especially in the context of developing countries where public transportation still remains a challenge and thus, ridesharing platforms are necessary for both employment and public mobility. This may require a combined effort of law enforcement agencies (e.g., the Ghana Police) and other authorities (e.g., driver unions). In terms of process, the findings show that ridesharing platforms enable drivers and riders to perform: 1) user-boundary actions – platform entry, platform utilisation, user identification, user set-up, and user rating; 2) user-boundary interactions – platform connection, users’ update, pick-up interactions, and end trip interactions; and 3) user-boundary transactions – booking transaction, trip transaction, and service transaction. The platforms, on the other hand, constrain drivers and riders from achieving their goals, namely, registration, information and reversal, location, and complaint constraints. The findings also show contextual factors that prevent drivers and riders from using ridesharing platforms in developing countries. The factors are internet outages, poor digital address system, lack of public phone charging systems and services, working condition, and car model. The study’s findings also show that innovations are coming up from drivers and riders due to the contextual factors. The innovations include drivers' and riders' interactions outside the boundary objects via text message and/or phone call for location identification, use of power bank to charge mobile phone battery rundown, and multiple users across different ridesharing platforms. Also, cars used by drivers have become part of the boundary object with tracking system and camera that can be stopped remotely when snatched by thieves. The thesis contributes to knowledge in terms of theory, research, practice, and policy. For theory, the study advances knowledge on the use of boundary object theory for studying a phenomenon involving a divergent group of users’ actions, interactions, and transactions across boundaries. The study also adds one concept to the theory called user-boundary transactions. Furthermore, this study introduces ridesharing platforms as boundary objects. For research, the study contributes to ridesharing platform literature. First, ridesharing has been introduced into a context which has a tradition of how cars are accessed and used from a public perspective and traditional riding is a social and physical infrastructure phenomenon. Second, however, ridesharing is a digital-enabled service which needs physical infrastructure. But in developing countries that physical and digital infrastructures are under-developed. Hence, for these to work efficiently, adaptations are occurring on the perspective of digital, physical, and social infrastructure. For practice, the study provides new insight into the use of ridesharing platforms, such as how drivers’ and riders’ profiles can assist security agencies to investigate post-trip activities in case of taxi fraud. For policy, the study provides lessons and guidelines for policy formulations in developing countries to guide ridesharing platforms in the sharing economy. The findings are limited to one developing country and the choice of interpretive research paradigm. These contributions from the study have been published in one book chapter and three conference papers. Furthermore, this study is the first to use the boundary object theory to understand users’ actions, interactions, and transactions across multiple organisations.Item Exploring Sustainability Practices In The Ghanaian Petroleum Sector – Downstream Companies In Focus(University of Ghana, 2022-07) Johnfiah, R.A.The study examines the sustainability practices of downstream petroleum firms in Ghana. Particularly, the study explores the focus areas of their sustainability practices and the manner through which sustainability practices are operationalised. This research adapts elements of the institutional theory to interpret the outcome of a series of semi-structured interviews with members of selected downstream petroleum companies in Ghana, thus, the qualitative research approach is adopted for the study. Participants were drawn from downstream petroleum firms in Ghana using the purposive sampling technique. The results of the study show that the focus areas identified, with regards to downstream petroleum firms in Ghana, are paramount channels through which sustainability is practiced. The study also finds that these focus areas, in as much as are common across firms in the downstream sector in Ghana was found to be different among companies in the mid and upstream petroleum sector. The findings of this study suggest that sustainability practices amongst downstream petroleum firms in Ghana constitute an important objective. This paper contributes to the literature on sustainability practices amongst downstream petroleum companies in Ghana by building on earlier conceptualizations of the institutional theory to explore motivations for downstream petroleum firms to engage in sustainability practices.Item The Impact Of Supply Chain Strategies On The Operations Performance Of Retail Firms In The Food And Beverage Industry In Ghana.(University of Ghana, 2021-10) Konlan, P.B.The Food and Beverage (F&B) industry contributes greatly to the development of the economy under the manufacturing sector. However, the F&B subsector of the manufacturing sector has received little attention in literature although, it provides both direct and indirect employment opportunities. This sector needs to be coordinated and integrated properly through its supply chains to create value and competitive edge to enhance retail operations performance. This study therefore, sought to assess the impact of supply chain strategies on the operations performance of retail firms in the F&B industry in Ghana. The supply chain strategies identified in the study are the lean, agile and Leagile. The retail operations performance is a dependent variable which was measured by efficiency and responsiveness. The study also sought to determine if the financial position of a firm mediates the supply chain strategies and the operations performance of the retail firms. Quantitative method and a cross-sectional survey research design were used. The study adopted a simple random and purposive sampling techniques for the study. A total of 300 responses out of the 363 retail firms issued with the questionnaires were received. The study used Structural Equation Modelling to analyze the data with the aim of drawing relationships between the independent and dependent variables. The study found that retail operations challenges such as stiff competition and stock out were the major challenges confronting retail operations in the F&B industry in Ghana. It also discovered that while lean supply chain strategy influences efficiency, it does not influence responsiveness. Again, the study revealed that while agile supply chain strategy influences responsiveness, it does not influence efficiency. The study further discovered that, leagile supply chain strategy influences both responsiveness and efficiency. The study again revealed that financial position of a firm has no mediation effect on the relationship between supply chain strategies and retail operations performance. The study ends by examining key contributions to policy, theory and practice on how supply chain strategies can be used to achieve maximum retail operations performance.