THE EFFECT OF LEADERSHIP QUALITIES ON THE PERFORMANCE OF SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES

Purpose: This study aims to investigate the effect of leadership qualities on the performance of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), and to examine the impact leadership qualities have on SMEs' performance.   Theoretical and Framework: Leadership qualities play a role in enhancing employee job satisfaction and organizational performance.  Trait theory believes that leaders are either born or made with some qualities that will make them excel in leadership roles.  Leaders’ emotional intelligence, integrity, honesty, creativity, and innovation are vital for Small and Medium Enterprises' sustainability.   Design/Methodology/Approach: Descriptive design was adopted, using cross-sectional approach. Purposive sampling was used with a sample size of 400 employees of SMEs in the Accra Metropolitan Area. Usable questionnaires of 344 were analysed using IBM SPSS for the descriptive statistics with structural equation model (SEM) AMOS to investigate the extent of the relationship.   Findings: The study discovered that each of the three leadership attributes has a strong statistically significant positive link with the success of SMEs. Emotional intelligence, integrity and honesty, and creativity and invention are factors that influence SMEs' performance.   Originality/Value: This work is unique because it adds to the literature on the impact of leadership traits on SME performance, which has not been thoroughly explored in a developing nation like Ghana. The study also illustrated how to utilize a structural equation model to examine the relationship between leadership and the performance of small businesses. Furthermore, by selecting samples from various SME sectors, the study enhanced the understanding of leadership attributes

CAPACITY BUILDING AND ITS EFFECT ON EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE: A CASE OF ACCRA TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY, GHANA / LE RENFORCEMENT DES CAPACITÉS ET SES EFFETS SUR LA PERFORMANCE DES EMPLOYÉS : UN CAS DE UNIVERSITÉ TECHNIQUE D'ACCRA, GHANA

Every institution or organisation must now deal with the capacity building because the quality of human resources is helpful to any firm. Due to variables like the degree of external change, such as new markets or processes, the compliance of existing employees, and most importantly, the degree to which the organisation supports the idea of internal career development, the quantity and quality of training carried out greatly varies from organisation to organisation. Unlike some businesses, which start by recognising their training needs, then plan training activities logically, and then assess the results of training, most organisations satisfy their training needs in an ad hoc and random manner. Therefore, this study used Accra Technical University as a case study to examine the effects of capacity building on employee development in public sector firms. The goal of the study was to ascertain the function of staff capacity building, with a special focus on administrators who were arbitrarily chosen. The study evaluated Accra Technical University's training and development programme and examined whether employee performance has increased as a result of training. To gather primary data from university personnel, a questionnaire was created using structured questions. The findings suggested that employees were not properly informed about the organization's training and development programmes. The majority of employees believed that personal and organisational success could be achieved through training and development. The results showed that, in terms of the generally accepted planned and methodical structure of the training process, training techniques, methodologies, and activities were the best practises. The university should assist its workers by developing structured programmes for training and development of its employees, among other things, as well as ensuring that the procedures involved in training are properly followed.Chaque institution ou organisation doit désormais s'occuper du renforcement des capacités car la qualité des ressources humaines est utile à toute entreprise. En raison de variables telles que le degré de changement externe, tels que de nouveaux marchés ou processus, la conformité des employés existants et, surtout, le degré auquel l'organisation soutient l'idée de développement de carrière interne, la quantité et la qualité de la formation dispensée grandement varie d'une organisation à l'autre. Contrairement à certaines entreprises, qui commencent par reconnaître leurs besoins de formation, puis planifient les activités de formation de manière logique, puis évaluent les résultats de la formation, la plupart des organisations satisfont leurs besoins de formation de manière ponctuelle et aléatoire. Par conséquent, cette étude a utilisé l'Université technique d'Accra comme étude de cas pour examiner les effets du renforcement des capacités sur le développement des employés dans les entreprises du secteur public. L'objectif de l'étude était de déterminer la fonction de renforcement des capacités du personnel, avec un accent particulier sur les administrateurs qui ont été choisis arbitrairement. L'étude a évalué le programme de formation et de développement de l'Université technique d'Accra et a examiné si les performances des employés avaient augmenté grâce à la formation. Afin de recueillir des données primaires auprès du personnel universitaire, un questionnaire a été créé à l'aide de questions structurées. Les résultats suggèrent que les employés n'étaient pas correctement informés des programmes de formation et de développement de l'organisation. La majorité des employés estimaient que le succès personnel et organisationnel pouvait être atteint grâce à la formation et au perfectionnement. Les résultats ont montré qu'en termes de structure planifiée et méthodique généralement acceptée du processus de formation, les techniques, méthodologies et activités de formation étaient les meilleures pratiques. L'université devrait aider ses travailleurs en développant des programmes structurés de formation et de développement de ses employés, entre autres, ainsi qu'en s'assurant que les procédures liées à la formation sont bien suivies.  Article visualizations

Circulation of hepatitis delta virus and occult hepatitis B virus infection amongst HIV/HBV co-infected patients in Korle-Bu, Ghana.

BackgroundWithin HIV/HBV infected patients, an increase in HDV infection has been observed; there is inadequate information on HDV prevalence as well as virologic profile in Ghana. This study sought to determine the presence of HDV in HIV/HBV co-infected patients in Ghana.MethodsThis was a longitudinal purposive study which enrolled 113 HIV/HBV co-infected patients attending clinic at Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) in Accra, Ghana. After consenting, 5 mL whole blood was collected at two-time points (baseline and 4-6 months afterwards). The sera obtained were tested to confirm the presence of HIV, HBV antibodies and/or antigens, and HBV DNA. Antibodies and viral RNA were also determined for HDV. Amplified HBV DNA and HDV RNA were sequenced and phylogenetic analysis carried out with reference sequences from the GenBank to establish the genotypes.ResultsOf the 113 samples tested 63 (55.7%) were females and 50 (44.25%) were males with a median age of 45 years. A total of 100 (88.5%) samples had detectable HBV surface antigen (HBsAg), and 32 out of the 113 had detectable HBV DNA. Nucleotide sequences were obtained for 15 and 2 samples of HBV and HDV, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis was predominantly genotype E for the HBVs and genotype 1 for the HDVs. Of the 13 samples that were HBsAg unreactive, 4 (30.8%) had detectable HBV DNA suggesting the incidence of occult HBV infections. The percentage occurrence of HDV in this study was observed to be 3.54.ConclusionOur data suggest the presence and circulation of HDV and incidence of occult HBV infection in HIV/HBV co-infected patients in Ghana. This informs health staff and makes it imperative to look out for the presence of HDV and occult HBV in HIV/HBV co-infected patients presenting with potential risk of liver cancers and HBV transmission through haemodialysis and blood transfusions

Bonferroni analysis.

(DOCX)</p

Distribution of influenza A subtypes and B lineages by months in Ghana from 2011 to 2019.

Influenza positivity rate and the number of influenza A subtypes and B lineages was plotted against months for ILI.</p

Map of Ghana showing selected influenza sentinel sites located throughout the country.

Also shown are the ecological variations of the country. Southern Ghana is green with semi-arid conditions, while Northern Ghana is dry and hot. Southern Ghana is densely populated (Accra-2,291,352) while population density in Northern Ghana is low (562,919-Tamale, Northern Region). Note: Only 19/31 sentinel sites are identified. Those located on Ghana Armed Forces military sites, with the exception of 37 Military Hospital, are not depicted for security reasons. The map was obtained from Centre for Remote Sensing and Geographical Information Services (CERSGIS). This was created using ESRI ArcMap version 10.8 with the boundaries obtained from Ghana Statistical Service (GSS).</p

Influenza positivity rates among ILI and SARI cases in Ghana by epidemiological weeks from 2011 to 2019.

Intensity thresholds were generated using the MEM web application (R version 4.2.1) and shown with dotted lines.</p

Symptom distribution of ILI and SARI cases based on influenza sub-types in Ghana.

*Pearson Chi-square test was used to obtain the p-values.</p

A: Influenza A subtypes by year, season, and age.

B: Influenza B lineages by year, season, and age. (DOCX)</p

Distribution of influenza A subtypes and B lineages by months in Ghana from 2011 to 2019.

Influenza positivity rate and the number of influenza A subtypes and B lineages was plotted against months for SARI.</p