Neo-liberalism, Human Security, and Pan-Africanist Ideals: Synergies and Contradictions

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Exploring perspectives about sexuality among Ghanaian youth living in Canada: Understanding the impact of cultural contact.

Research on sexuality in Ghana has been scanty due to the nature of the Ghanaian society where sensitive issues like sexuality are not openly discussed and researched. This qualitative study examined how social contact with Canadian society has impacted the views of Ghanaian students living in Canada about sexuality. The data for this research study were gathered through in-depth interviews with 15 Ghanaian students between ages18 to 30 who had been living in Canada for more than one year. This study’s findings revealed that religion plays a central role in shaping views about sexuality among young Ghanaians living in Canada. The findings also highlighted the impact of cultural contact in shaping several aspects of sexuality including contraception and same-sex relations. The theoretical implications of this study’s results are discussed in terms of how they can help to clarify culturally informed models focusing on the role played by society, religion, family and peers in the development of adolescent perspectives about sexuality. The practical and educational implications of this study’s results are also discussed

Strategies and Initiatives in Acculturation: Voices from Ghana

Culture shock and acculturation are salient aspects of any international study trip. Over the years, many institutions have devised several strategies to help international students transition to life in the host country. However, most of these strategies are insensitive to diverse cultural or country specifics. Drawing from Social Learning Theory, this paper provides narratives from four former students from the West African country of Ghana and how they navigated the process of acculturation in their respective host nations. The narratives discuss their feelings during the study abroad trip, some of the challenges they faced, and personal as well as institutional strategies that aided in ameliorating the experience of culture shock. A few recommendations for Student Affairs Practitioners are also provided

Impact of Mobile Number Portability on Service Delivery in the Mobile Telecommunication Industry in Ghana; Case Study of Bharti Airtel Ghana Limited, Kumasi

The mobile telecommunication industry has seen a major increase in competition in recent years. This as a result of similarity of service provided.  In giving consumers more bargaining power the, National Communication Authority (NCA) has introduce Mobile Number Portability (MNP) which enables subscribers the opportunity to switch or change providers. The study intents to investigates the impact of MNP on service delivery, and go further to ascertain  the factors that influence customer porting decisions, benefit of porting to the company and customers, the nature of service quality before and after the introduction of MNP. The research design was descriptive, both primary and secondary sources of data collection method were used to answer the research questions. Primary data was gathered from the one hundred and sixty four (164) respondents through a structured questionnaire. The target population for the study was therefore all the customers who have ported to Airtel in Kumasi. Combinations of purposive and accidental sampling techniques were used to select the one hundred and sixty four (164) respondents. The study revealed that price, service quality and company reputation influence customers porting behavior. It was recommended that the companies should adopt a cost leadership competitive strategy, continues corporate social responsibility programmes, and continues improvement of service quality delivery. Keywords: Mobile number portability, Service Quality, Competition, Price, Company reputatio

Assessing the Nature of Competition in the Telecommunication Industry: A Case Study of Airtel Ghana Limited, Kumasi

Due to the huge potential in Ghana’s mobile phone sector, the industry is experiencing an intense competition, a battle for supremacy in the mobile phone industry.  The telecommunication sector is securing extraordinary growth in Ghana with increasing levels of mobile penetration. The study seeks to assess the nature of competition and its impact on the telecommunication industry using Airtel Ghana Limited as the case study. Both primary and secondary sources of data were used. Target population included all top officials and management staff of Airtel Ghana.  Random sampling was used to select fifteen (15) members of management and marketing staff as the sample size for the study, this constituted 83.3% of the total population. Analysis of data collected was done using SPSS. Findings revealed that the industry structure is concentrated; the competitive strategy adopted was cost leadership, differentiation and focus, driving forces of competition in the industry were rivalry among current competitors and bargaining power of customers and the basses of competition were price, new product development, and promotions. It is therefore recommended that companies adopt one competitive strategy, embark on customer loyalty programmes, invest in research on new product development, and be skill at internal marketing. KEYWORDS: Industry, competition, driving forces, concentrated, new product development, strategy

The Politics of Trade Disputes in the Fourth Republic: The Case of Ghana and Nigeria

The relationship between Ghana and Nigeria over the years can be described as oscillatory because of the occasional twist and turn. Notably, a trade dispute was one of the challenges that marred the relationship between the two countries. Historically, trade disputes emerged in the 1930s as a result of the cocoa hold-up crisis in 1932, and this led to the call by the National Crusade for the protection of Ghanaian enterprises to expel foreign traders, predominantly Nigerians. This phenomenon continued during Busia's regime, where he expelled a large number of Nigerian traders through the Aliens Compliance Order in 1969. Buhari's regime also responded in 1983-85 by expelling over one million Ghanaians from Nigeria for economic and trade reasons. In 2012, the government of Ghana employed a contingent economic policy that led to the closure of many Nigerian shops. Moreover, the closure of the Nigerian land borders on Ghana and other trading partners revived the trade tension between the two countries, where Ghanaians retaliated with other draconian policies. The intermittent trade disputes between the two countries triggered the quest of the researchers to assess the fundamental driving forces of the impasse, identify the politico-economic ramifications of the disputes on both countries and provide some recommendations to deal with the problem. Relevant related literature was reviewed thematically, and International Regime Theory was used to underpin the research. The study used a qualitative research approach to gather in-depth data from respondents through interviews and observations. Thematic analysis was used as an approach for data interpretation and discussion. The relevant literature and the findings revealed that the inconsistencies of ECOWAS protocols with the national trade policies, the use of protectionist economic policies such as the "prohibited goods" policy by Nigeria against Ghana, and the implementation of the GIPC Act 2013 (865), Nigeria’s border closure, and lockdown of Nigerian retail shops in Ghana were some of the fundamental driving forces of the trade disputes between the countries in the fourth republic. Economically, the occasional trade disturbances led to the loss of capital and revenue for traders from both sides. Notwithstanding these challenges, there was an initiative by both governments to find a lasting solution to the menace. The research concluded with some recommendations for policy and praxis. Keywords: Trade Dispute, ECOWAS Protocols, Traders Association, West Africa, Fourth Republic DOI: 10.7176/JESD/14-10-07 Publication date:May 31st 202

The successful Ghana election of 2008: a convenient myth?

Ghana's 2008 election has been hailed by national and international observers as a model for Africa. The perception of success has prevailed despite persistent concerns about an inflated voters' register and electoral fraud perpetrated by the two major parties, the NPP and NDC, in their strongholds in the Ashanti and Volta Regions respectively. Electoral malpractice in Ghana's virtual two-party system could acquire a decisive importance as a ‘third force’, representing an even more important factor than the smaller opposition parties. Unfortunate diplomatic and technocratic biases in election monitoring, combined with a reluctance on the part of the responsible authorities to investigate what appears to be a long history of fraudulent voting, amounts to a dangerous time bomb of unresolved conflict which could detonate in future elections

Ghana's Politics of International Economic Relations under the PNDC, 1982-1992

Ghanaian governments since independence have had to align either with the East or the West depending on the government's ideological orientation. For Ghana, national development has been the main propelling factor to enter into the international system. The Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC), a military regime, succeeded in balancing external relations between the East and the West before the collapse of communism. The outcomes of external economic relations were mixed. Whereas relatioships, especially with the Bretton Woods institutions led to impressive macroeconomic indicators, the impacts on the wellbeing of majority of the people were negative. Domestic policy measures were tailored to satisfy foreign interests. In the process, the nation's debt burden escalated and the nation is yet to reap lasting and positive benefits from the regime's international economic relations

Self-Stigma, Social Stigma, and Attitudes towards seeking Professional Counseling: International Students at Mississippi State University

Each year, there is an increase in the number of international students pursuing higher education in the United States. These students often experience varying degrees of acculturative stress. International students are however not likely to seek counseling. Stigma has been identified as a major barrier to seeking psychological help. The study explored the relationship between self-stigma, social stigma, gender, and length of stay/residence as predictors of attitudes towards seeking professional psychological help of international students attending Mississippi State University. Results of the study indicated that between self-stigma and gender were statistically significant predictors of international students’ attitudes towards seeking professional psychological help. Self-stigma was inversely related to students’ attitudes towards seeking counseling and implied that international students with greater self-stigma were more likely to have negative attitudes towards seeking professional psychological help. Mean scores on the attitudes towards counseling scale suggested that some participants were positively inclined towards counseling while others were not. Similarly, mean scores on the self-stigma scale indicated that some participants found the act of seeking help personally stigmatizing while others did not. There were no statistically significant differences between males and females, and their attitudes towards seeking professional counseling. The results indicated that self-stigma might have a greater influence on help seeking as compared to social stigma. It also confirms the research that suggests that gender might play a role in influencing attitudes toward counseling. Limitations of the study, especially with regard to recruitment and mode of data collection, sampling procedures, instrumentation, and other demographic variables were discussed and alternatives explored