Breaking the glass ceiling: experiences of women leaders in private corporate organisations in Ghana

The purpose of the study was to explore the experiences of women leaders in private corporate organisations in Ghana. To achieve this objective, three research questions were asked. What are the experiences of women in private corporate leadership positions? How do women leaders’ understanding, and perceptions of leadership shape their own leadership style? How do women leaders navigate work and non-work settings, and what are the opportunities and limitations they face in doing so? To appropriately tackle these questions a qualitative phenomenological research design was adopted as the methodology. In-depth interviews, observations and informal conversations were used as data collection methods. Seventeen informants comprising ten women leaders and seven subordinates were identified and recruited as informants for this study. Interviews were conducted with each of these informants. The data was analysed through condensation analysis. The role congruity theory of prejudice towards female leaders, the triple role theory and the concepts of transformational and transactional leadership were used as a theoretical framework to guide the study. Key findings from the study include the role of traditions and religious beliefs as a hindrance for women advancement to leadership, discrimination and prejudice against women in leadership. Other findings include the dominance of transformational leadership styles in the enactment of leadership by women leaders, the importance of self-discipline, family members and domestic workers as facilitative strategies to manoeuvre through the triple role of production, reproduction and community engagements.GLODE36

Allergen-induced change in airway responsiveness to direct and indirect stimuli in mild atopic asthmatics

Methacholine (MCh) and mannitol challenges are tests used to assess airway responsiveness. It has been shown that airway responsiveness to direct bronchoconstrictors like MCh tends to increase following exposure to allergen but the response to mannitol an indirect stimuli, is not known. Furthermore, the provocative concentration causing a 20% decrease in Forced Expiratory Volume in one second (FEV1) for adenosine 5’ monophosphate (AMP) correlates better to sputum eosinophilia than MCh PC 20. Hence, we hypothesized that airway responsiveness will be greater when measured with mannitol than MCh. We studied airway responsiveness to MCh and mannitol first at 3 hours and then later at 24 hours after allergen challenge. The 3-hour study yielded results contrary to our hypothesis therefore a twenty-four hour study was undertaken. Ten mild atopic asthmatics who had a positive MCh challenge and an allergic response to allergen extracts such as cat, horse, and house dust mite completed the 3-hour study. Eleven mild atopic asthmatics with the criteria above completed the 24-hour study. Both studies were non-blinded, randomized clinical trials. Airway responsiveness to MCh was quantitated by changes in PC20. Airway responsiveness to mannitol was quantitated as PD15 in the 3-hour study and dose response ratio (DRR) in the 24-hour study. In both studies, the allergen challenges were separated by 14 days. Fractional exhaled nitric oxide measurements (FENO) were collected in both studies at varying time points to track airway inflammation. In the 3-hour study, the geometric mean MCh PC20 decreased significantly after allergen exposure from 0.88 mg/ml to 0.50 mg/ml (p = 0.02) indicating airway responsiveness to MCh increased. Conversely, the geometric mean mannitol PD15 increased significantly from 174 mg to 284 mg (p =0.02) indicating a decrease in airway responsiveness to mannitol. In the 24-hour study, the geometric mean MCh PC20 again decreased significantly from 5.9 mg/ml to 2.2 mg/ml (p= 0.01) after allergen exposure. The mannitol DRR increased significantly from 63 mg/∆%FEV1 to 158 mg/∆%FEV1 (p = 0.03). FENO levels increased significantly in MCh arm but not mannitol arm. That is pre allergen challenge versus 24 hours after allergen challenge (for MCh arm: 26 ppb pre to 55 ppb post; for mannitol arm: 31 ppb pre to 39 ppb post). In conclusion, at three and twenty-four hours after allergen challenge, a time when the airways are more responsive to MCh, there is a significant decrease in airway responsiveness to mannitol

PROPHETIC PRACTICES IN CONTEMPORARY PENTECOSTALISM IN GHANA

This paper examines some current practices evident in Ghanaian Pentecostal prophetism. It describes some of these practices and the criticality of these in the faith of both prophets and patrons. These prophetic rituals/practices are important because of the belief that the world is a place of battles with enemies, whose main purpose is to destroy human life. To cope with this, prophets lead patrons to engage in rituals of positivisation that seek to overturn the activities of their enemies. This is achieved through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit and the blood and name of Jesus Christ. The paper employs the discursive and analytical approach to the topic. It concludes by examining some contextualized issues in relation to the prophetic problem in Ghanaian Pentecostalism

Beyond the glass ceiling: an exploration of the experiences of female corporate organizational leaders in Ghana

Although an increase in the inclusion of women in the global labor market has been reported in recent times, existing literature show that women are still heavily underrepresented in organizational leadership positions. Many studies in this area mainly focused on perceived barriers to women’s ascend to leadership positions, while little attention is paid to insights into the lived experiences of women who have already managed to assume leadership positions. This study was conducted to plug this gap in the literature. We interviewed 10 women corporate organizational leaders in Ghana to share their lived experiences as female leaders within the Ghanaian context. Our findings reveal that women still face several challenges even after breaking the glass ceiling to attain leadership positions in corporate organizations in Ghana. The main challenges were raised around the issue of gender, discrimination, age, their roles as mothers and wives. On the other hand, their positions also came with benefits and opportunities such as improved financial status, a command for respect as well as increasing their social and business networking capacity. More importantly, age although a disadvantage for the young women leaders, it was seen as a resource for older women as it enhances their respect and seen as performance of motherhood roles in this Ghanaian context. The study concludes that although women leaders’ experiences are largely negative, older women leaders seemed to utilize their positions actively and creatively and perform pseudo-motherhood roles which in turn helps them in the performance of their leadership roles.publishedVersio

Understanding the challenges and nature of land administration in the Tamale Metropolis, Northern Region, Ghana

Land plays an integral role in almost every economic activity. Land administration, therefore, is critical for the national development of a country. It is the hope and aspiration of many to own landed property for various reasons such as for residential, agricultural, and commercial purposes amongst others. Some African countries over the years have embarked on several land administration and land registration reforms to stimulate growth and reduce poverty amongst its people and these programmes are yielding positive results in some of these countries. This paper used semi-structured questionnaires to elicit information from fifty-one (51) participants in the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly, including traditional leaders, members of the general public who have ever registered their lands with the Lands Commission and Divisional heads at the Lands Commission, through randomly and purposefully selected sampling, respectively. This paper reveals that there are still teething challenges affecting land administration in Tamale which include the cost of land, cost of registration, corruption, weak coordination among land sector agencies, encroachment of state land, poor record-keeping on the land transaction and unidentified traditional land boundaries. This paper recommends effective coordination among land sector stakeholders including the land commission, land use and spatial planning authority and the traditional authorities for meaningful reforms on land administration

Impact of Urban Effluents on the Macroinvertebrates of a Creek in Accra, Ghana

The impact of effluents on the macroinvertebrate communities of an urban creek in Accra was studied. Five study stations were selected along the reaches of the creek. Water and benthic samples were collected and analyzed between September 2005 and February 2006. The study showed that the effluent discharges caused a significant increase in BOD, COD and NH3 at the stations that received the effluents. The high levels of total and faecal coliforms at the midstream sections of the creek (626.0 x 104 cfu/100 ml and 75.30 x 104 cfu/100 ml, respectively) indicated increased pollution levels compared to the reference stations (446.0 x 103 cfu/100 ml and 133.0 x 103 cfu/100 ml). The Nima Creek showed characteristics of a disturbed urban creek. A total of 19 macroinvertebrate taxa, comprising a total of 11,613 individuals, were collected. Estimated Shannon-Weiner Diversity Index (H´) was low at the midstream section of the creek, H’= 1.14, where the effluents were concentrated than at the upstream H’=1.44 or downstream H’= 1.38 sections of the creek. Chironomini and Physa were the most abundant taxa within the creek, dominated by the genus Chironomus, which is known to be tolerant to pollution, which confirmed the polluted state of the creek. Rigorous and regular assessment and monitoring of effluents from waste treatment plants and other sources that discharge into the creek, with the aim of complying with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) guidelines are some of the mitigative measures suggested to protect life in the creek

Performance of Sustainable Road Pavements Founded on Clay Subgrades Treated with Eco-Friendly Cementitious Materials

Clays encountered during road construction are mostly weak and result in major pavement failures due to their low California bearing ratio (CBR) and high swelling potential. In this study, sustainable and eco-friendly waste materials including brick dust waste (BDW), ground granulated blastfurnance slag (GGBS), recycled plastic (RP) and recycled glass (RG) at varying proportions of 11.75% and 23.5% were used as partial replacement for cement and lime in clay treatment. After determining the water content by conducting Atterberg limit and compaction test, A CBR and swell characteristics of treated and untreated clay were also conducted. A road pavement design was conducted using the Design Manual for Road and Bridges (DMRB) as a guide to determine the performance of treated clay with varying CBR values. A road pavement failure analysis was also conducted to understand the defect formation within pavement structures supported by eco-friendly treated clay. The embodied carbon of treated clay was calculated and a life cycle cost analysis (LCCA) of flexible pavement with treated clay and road with imported materials was conducted. The results show a liquid limit of 131.26 and plastic limit of 28.74 for high plasticity index (clay 1) and liquid limit of 274.07 and a plastic limit of 45.38 for extremely high plasticity index (clay 2). An increase in CBR values from 8% and 9% to 57% and 97% with a reduction in swell values from 4.11% and 5.03% to 0.38% and 0.56% were recorded. This resulted in a reduction in pavement thickness and stresses within the road pavement leading to reduced susceptibility of the pavement to fatigue, rutting and permanent deformation. Very low embodied carbon was recorded for eco-friendly treated clay and a high life cycle cost (LCC) with clay removed and replaced with imported materials compared with clay treated using eco-friendly waste materials. The study concluded that carbon and overall construction costs can be reduced using waste materials in road construction. Owners and operators can save money when clay is treated and used in road construction instead of removing clay and replacing it with imported materials

An epidemiological study of recent outbreaks of Gumboro disease in Ghana

A study to assess the epidemiological factors responsible for the recent outbreaks of infectious bursal disease (IBD) in Accra and Kumasi, between October and December 2002 and January to April 2003, was conducted. Case report records at Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratories were examined for IBD cases. Farm investigations were carried out using a combination of questionnaire and interviews to obtain information on the disease situation on farms, where the outbreaks had occurred. The highest occurrence of the disease was recorded between March and April 2003, with Accra showing the highest number of cases in March, coinciding with the Easter season. Day-old chicks imported into the country succumbed more easily to the disease than those produced locally. There was an association between IBD and the chicken type that was significant (P < 0.05) in cockerels and layers. Chickens vaccinated twice were more likely to be protected from the disease than those not vaccinated or vaccinated only once. The prevalence of the disease was also influenced by the age of the chickens with a rise in susceptibility with age from 3 weeks to 6 weeks old. The results of the study indicate that the factors studied, namely source of day old chicks, bird type, vaccination history, and age of chicks at the time of outbreak influenced outbreaks of IBD and are likely to contribute to the endemicity of infectious bursal disease in the poultry producing areas of Ghana. It is recommended that stringent biosecurity measures be observed on poultry farms to control the disease in the country

Sustainable stabilisation of expansive road pavement foundations, pavement thickness optimisation and defects analysis

Expansive road subgrade has been in existence for decades resulting in major road pavement defects, high maintenance/construction costs and detrimental environmental effects associated with using traditional cement and lime in subgrade stabilisation. Taking a sustainable approach, this research aims to address these issues using waste and industrial by-products (i.e. brick dust waste (BDW), ground granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBS), recycled plastic (RP) and recycled glass (RG) as partial replacements for cement and lime in subgrade stabilisation. The study investigates the sample characteristics, mineral structure, Atterberg limit, compaction, California Bearing Ratio (CBR), swell and microstructural properties of treated and untreated expansive subgrade materials.Sustainable waste materials and industrial by-products at proportions of 23.5%GGBS, 23.5%RP, 23.5%RG, 23.5%BDW and 11.75%GGBS, 11.75%RP, 11.75%RG, 11.75%BDW were used to achieve the optimum results. This reduced 20%Cement and 8%Lime (control mix design) to 2.5%Cement and 2%Lime. The 2.5%Cement was later eliminated and GGBS increased to 26% to see the effect on subgrade. Untreated high plasticity index (PI) (103) subgrade recorded Optimum Moisture Content (OMC) of 34.46% with a standard deviation (SD) of 23.41% and Maximum Dry Density (MDD) of 1.25Mg/m³ (SD=0.31%). A Liquid Limit (LL) of 131.26% (SD=18.18%) and Plastic Limit (PL) of 28.74% (SD=1.85%) were also recorded for untreated high PI subgrade. Untreated extremely high PI subgrade (249) recorded higher OMC of 40.97% (SD=9.42%) and MDD of 1.17 Mg/m³ (SD=0.28%) with much higher LL of 294.07% (SD=48.48%) and PL of 45.38% (SD=1.13%). CBR values for untreated subgrade increased from 0.6% (SD=4.38%) to 109% (SD=34.10%) and 200% (SD=53%) and up to 220% (SD=54%) after 28 and 90 days of curing when 20%Cement+8% Lime were partially replaced with 23.5%GGBS, 11.75%GGBS+11.75%BDW and 26%GGBS. Swell values reduced from 56.76% (SD=7.72%) to 0.04% (SD=0.01%) after 20%Cement+8%Lime were partially replaced with 23.5%GGBS and 11.75%GGBS+11.75%BDW translating into reduced pavement thickness and depth of construction when pavement design was conducted in the study.Road pavement thickness of 700mm and depth of construction of 800mm recorded for untreated subgrade with CBR values less than 2% reduced to 40mm and 50mm with CBR values between 80-100% when 20%Cement+8%Lime were partially replaced with 23.5%GGBS and 11.75%GGBS +11.75%BDW. Pavement design conducted using CBR values between 80-100% achieved for waste-treated subgrade in accordance with Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB) recorded a slight reduction in pavement thickness with reduced stresses responsible for pavement defects. A gradual reduction in CBR values from 230% (SD=54,61%) to 16% (SD=29.81%) for high PI subgrade and from 200% (SD=47.79%) to 15% (SD.=20.44%) for extremely high PI subgrade was observed after ten (10) wetting-drying cycles when 20%Cement+8%Lime was partially replaced with 23.5%GGBS and 11.75%GGBS+11.75%BDW. These acceptable CBR values achieved for wetting-drying cycle were due to the formation of high Calcium Silicate Hydrate (CSH) gel in the mix where up to 44.87% (SD=11.98%) of calcium (Ca) was recorded after 28 days of curing. Mix design 2%Lime+2.5%Cement+23.5%GGBS was selected as the optimised and most viable mix design in this study followed by mix design 2%Lime+2.5%Cement+11.75%GGBS+11.75%BDW due to their ability to achieve acceptable results for the set objectives including reduced Life Cycle Cost (LCC).Furthermore, a 55% reduction in LCC (£268,433,336) was observed for a kilometre (km) of road subgrade treated using 23.5%GGBS; whilst a high LCC of £488,754,774 was recorded for a km of road subgrade removed and replaced with foreign materials. Sustainably treated subgrade using 23.5%GGBS recorded 21% lower embodied carbon (0.0018 Co₂e/kg); whilst subgrade treated using 20%Cement+8%Lime recorded high embodied carbon of 0.0084 Co₂e/kg. Based on these findings, the study concluded that the engineering properties of expansive subgrade can be enhanced with reduced pavement thickness/construction depth, defects, carbon emission and overall LCC using sustainable waste as additives in subgrade stabilisation. However, the findings are based entirely on laboratory generated data and not field data. Therefore, as a next step, and before widespread uptake is considered, it is important that the findings are tested and verified in real-life field setting

DISCOURSE ON NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES INTERVENTIONS IN GHANA (1990-2018)

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as cardiovascular diseases and diabetes are reported to have caused significant deaths for more than a decade. Consequently, NCDs have posed as a threat to the socio-economic well-being of individuals and families, contributed to a rise in healthcare costs and largely undermined the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) especially in developing countries. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the prevalence of NCDs have compounded the problem of already ill equipped healthcare systems in these countries as they are faced with constraints to deal with the burden of both infectious and non-communicable diseases. Informed largely by the rapid increase in NCDs and their subsequent threat to public health, we aimed to ascertain the various healthcare interventions that Ghana has fashioned out in her bid to prevent and control the incidence of NCDs, how these interventions were rolled out and examined past and present barriers to their implementation since 1990. We culled the data gathered for this paper from both primary and secondary sources to construct a coherent synthesis and to facilitate discussions on Ghana’s NCDs interventions from 1990 to 2018. A systematic analysis of the data gathered, revealed that Ghana’s healthcare system has by far tackled the NCDs burden in two folds; the clinical care aspect and the health promotion aspect. While certain healthcare interventions were purposively directed toward addressing NCDs, others were directed at promoting healthy lifestyles but had a bearing on the prevention and control of NCDs. Present challenges concerning shortfalls in interventions are a reflection of unresolved challenges in the past. We argue that despite the significant strides made for more than two decades, the interventions have addressed the burden of NCDs with limited success given the trends in NCDs mortality and morbidity