Gender and Ethical Behaviour of Accounting Students: An Empirical Evidence of University of Cape Coast

This study examined the difference between gender and ethical behaviour of accounting students. The study covered University of Cape Coast level 400 accounting students. Descriptive survey was employed to achieve the objective of the study. Stratified and simple random sampling technique was used to sample 200 respondents for the study. Descriptive and inferential statistics were employed. It was revealed that ethical beliefs of the respondents were influenced mainly by their ‘Religion’. Additionally, this present study found no significant difference in mean in the ethical sensitivity of male and female accounting students. Furthermore, the outcome of the study conducted on gender and ethical behaviour revealed that, male accounting students behaves more ethical than their female counterpart though female accounting students showed higher intentions in behaving ethically. From the findings it is recommended that conscious effort should be made by lecturers to sensitise and enlighten the students on the importance of making ethical decision even when not back by law to do so, for ethics goes beyond legal actions. Secondly, ethics must not only be taught but lived by the lecturers. This is because some of the respondents did state that the lifestyle of their teachers and lecturers influence their ethical beliefs. Thirdly, managements and policymakers should establish accounting ethics as a standalone course; this will help improve the ethical behaviour of the students. Keywords: Accounting, Accounting Students, Ethics, Ethical Behaviour, Ethical Sensitivity, Gende

Intergenerational Versus Intragenerational Equities and the Development of Resource-Rich But Poor Countries: The Case of Ghana

The fundamental objective of the paper is to proffer credible and empirical evidence to show that whilst the concept of intergenerational equity may be laudable, the proposition by the intergenerational equity theorists that a reasonable portion of resource revenue ought to be saved in financial instrument is not a prudent policy for the management of natural resource revenue in countries currently experiencing under development. The paper seeks to argue that basic amenities like education and health, which are currently in huge deficit, must be provided for in the country before a policy for saving of revenue in financial instruments are fashioned out and implemented in Ghana. This stance is buttressed by the legitimate concern that monies be locked up in some financial institutions (mostly of foreign origin) whilst the country borrows huge sums of money from these same foreign sources at huge interest. The intergenerational equity proposition is therefore seen as a principle that is rooted in antiquity. Recommendations made include the following; that resource-rich but poor countries ought to put in place legal and institutional framework and where they exist they must be resourced and all enforced to ensure that the country derives maximum benefits from resource endowment.  Also, resource-endowed but poor countries ought to sieve policies imposed or introduced by foreign sources like the IMF and the World Bank before adopting and implementing them  in their various countries. Keywords: Intergenerational equity, Intragenerational equity, developing countries, Resource-Rich but poor countries, Ghan

Determinants of Household Water Quality in the Tamale Metropolis, Ghana

Improved water source is essential for the health of both urban and rural dwellers. However, Over 1 billion people globally are without access to clean water and adequate sanitation facilities. The purpose of this study was to assess the factors that influence water quality in the Tamale metropolis, Ghana. The study was conducted with 250 respondents who were randomly sampled and interviewed. Data was analyzed with STATA 11 software. Chi-square and multivariate regression analysis were used to investigate the relationships between socio-demographic characteristics, water source, and water collection and storage methods and household water quality. Two assays of water quality were used: heterotrophic plate count (HPC) for total coliform and feacal counts and the multiple tube method for Escherichia Coli (E coli). The study results shows that majority of samples tested had feacal coliforms. Water from 83% of studied samples tested positive for the presence of E coli in household water. Source of water, distance to water source, place and duration of water storage influenced household water quality. Households with water source outside homes were less likely to have quality water (OR=0.19; p<0.01). On-the-point household treatment strategies should be adopted to make water safe for household consumption. Keywords: Household, Quality, Storage, Tamale, Water, Ghan

Preparedness for Use of Health Information for Planning and Decision Making: A Study of Health Facilities in the Kumasi Metropolis, Ghana

Background: Providing the right quality information system promotes effective and efficient ways of using scarce resources through proper planning and decision-making. This however depends on availability of infrastructure and adequate staff training on use of health information.Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among health facilities in the Kumasi metropolis and data was collected from June to September 2011. The study involved 323 health staffs, recruited from among1162 health workers from public, private, quasi and mission health facilities and the Metro Health Directorate in four of the ten sub-metros across the Kumasi metropolis. Data was analysed with STATA 11 software. Results: More than 50% had received training on HI among all the facilities. Comparatively, training on HIS was lower in the public hospitals. Training on HI and relevance the training had significant associations with the use of HI (p<0.001). Respondents who had never had training on HI were less likely to use HI for planning and decision-making as compared to those who had ever had training (OR=0.086; 95% CI=0.03, 0.25). Although most facilities had available logistics for storage, processing and using health information, not all were functioning. Challenges associated with use of HI included inaccurate data, low knowledge on IT, unreliable information, inconsistent data, improper documentation and power cut offs. Conclusion: Use of health information remains critical to making evidenced based decision-making. Improving health training and the requisite logistics could improve use of HI among health staffs. Keywords: health information, planning, Kumasi metropolis, training, logistics, preparednes

Firm-level political risk and corporate leverage decisions

Peer reviewe

Prevalence and knowledge of hypertension among people living in rural communities in Ghana: a mixed method study

Background: Knowledge and understanding of hypertension and its associated health risks remain inadequate despite increasing trend of hypertension prevalence. This study was conducted to assess the prevalence, knowledge and perceptions of hypertension in rural communities in Ghana.Methods: A mixed method study involving 534 subjects was employed. Data was collected in six communities from May to December 2014 with structured questionnaires and interview guides. A logistic regression analysis was conducted to estimate the influence of the socio-demographic factors on knowledge of hypertension. Qualitative data was thematically analyzed.Results: The mean systolic blood pressure (BP) was higher in men than women (127.42mmHg versus 124.42mmHg). The proportion of hypertensives was 21.4% and was higher among men in all age categories. Knowledge on some risk factors of hypertension was extremely low. Having formal education was associated with higher odds of knowledge of hypertension (Adjusted odds ratio [AOR]; 95% confidence interval [CI]=2.28; 1.25-4.16). Several misconceptions such as the use of agro-chemicals, fertilizers and excess vitamins  were identified as causes of hypertension.Conclusion: This study demonstrates an increased prevalence of hypertension, knowledge gaps and misconceptions surrounding hypertension in rural communities in Ghana. This evidence is useful in streamlining interventional programmes aimed at improving knowledge and prevention of hypertension.Keywords: Hypertension, knowledge, prevalence, rural communities, Ghana, blood pressure

Knowledge of Health Information for Healthcare Decision Making: A Cross Sectional Study of Health Staff in Kumasi Metropolis, Ghana

Health information collected and analyzed by health staff is the backbone for decision-making. Health staff’s Knowledge and understanding influence their usage of health information for health care planning and decision-making. This study assessed the knowledge and understanding of health information among health staffs in the Ashanti region, Ghana. This cross-sectional study was conducted from June to September 2011. The study involved 323 health staffs who were sampled from among1162 health workers from public, private, quasi and mission health facilities and the Metro Health Directorate in four of the ten sub-metros across the Kumasi metropolis. Data was analysed with STATA 11 software. The study outcome indicates a high level of knowledge of health information among health staffs in the Kumasi metropolis with 77% having comprehensive knowledge on HI (measured by correct responses of the statements to tease out knowledge). Awareness was however low among staff of quasi facilities. Staffs knowledge of health information was influenced by their academic qualification, profession and training on health information. Lack of awareness and training on health information discouraged the use of HI among health staffs (OR=0.02 and 0.08 respectively). Health information remains critical to making evidenced based decision-making. Improving the knowledge and understanding of health staffs will go a long way to increase the use of health information for planning and decision-making. Keywords: Health information, planning, Kumasi metropolis, knowledge, decision makin

pyESDv1.0.1: an open-source Python framework for empirical-statistical downscaling of climate information

The nature and severity of climate change impacts vary significantly from region to region. Consequently, high-resolution climate information is needed for meaningful impact assessments and the design of mitigation strategies. This demand has led to an increase in the application of empirical-statistical downscaling (ESD) models to general circulation model (GCM) simulations of future climate. In contrast to dynamical downscaling, the perfect prognosis ESD (PP-ESD) approach has several benefits, including low computation costs, the prevention of the propagation of GCM-specific errors, and high compatibility with different GCMs. Despite their advantages, the use of ESD models and the resulting data products is hampered by (1) the lack of accessible and user-friendly downscaling software packages that implement the entire downscaling cycle, (2) difficulties reproducing existing data products and assessing their credibility, and (3) difficulties reconciling different ESD-based predictions for the same region. We address these issues with a new open-source Python PP-ESD modeling framework called pyESD. pyESD implements the entire downscaling cycle, i.e., routines for data preparation, predictor selection and construction, model selection and training, evaluation, utility tools for relevant statistical tests, visualization, and more. The package includes a collection of well-established machine learning algorithms and allows the user to choose a variety of estimators, cross-validation schemes, objective function measures, and hyperparameter optimization in relatively few lines of code. The package is well-documented, highly modular, and flexible. It allows quick and reproducible downscaling of any climate information, such as precipitation, temperature, wind speed, or even short-term glacier length and mass changes. We demonstrate the use and effectiveness of the new PP-ESD framework by generating weather-station-based downscaling products for precipitation and temperature in complex mountainous terrain in southwestern Germany. The application example covers all important steps of the downscaling cycle and different levels of experimental complexity. All scripts and datasets used in the case study are publicly available to (1) ensure the reproducibility and replicability of the modeled results and (2) simplify learning to use the software package

Knowledge, Perceptions and Practices on Antiretroviral Therapy in Farming Communities in Ghana: A Study of HIV Positive Women

Abstract Low levels of knowledge of antiretroviral therapy (ART) and Prevention of Mother-To-Child-Trans mission (MTCT) among persons living with HIV present an unwanted window for transmission within the general population. The purpose of this study is to assess the level of knowledge, attitudes and perceptions of HIV positive wo men on antiretroviral therapy (ART) and Prevention of Mother-To-Ch ild-Transmission (MTCT). The study surveyed 211 HIV positive wo men fro m A RT centres in two districts in Ashanti region of Ghana. Data was collected through interviews using structured questionnaires and focus group discussion using interview guides. Qualitative and quantitative techniques were used to analyze the data. The study revealed that about 15% of the wo men exh ibited no knowledge about the possibility of transmission of HIV fro m mother to child whilst 36% had no knowledge on the mode of MTCT of HIV. Those who had knowledge of MTCT indicated that this could be intrauterine (88%), delivery (69%) and through breastfeeding (82 %).Mothers with inco mprehensive knowledge on ART were 2.5 t imes more likely to defau lt A RT (OR=2.5, p=0.002). Co mprehensive knowledge was positively influenced by high education level (OR=1.9; p =0.003). Social marketing campaigns should be developed and targeted at improving wo men literacy on their health issues and getting more wo men to test for HIV in order to incorporate them into PMTCT programmes. Further research however needs to be conducted to ascertain the facility and community based factors that influence the women's knowledge on ART and PMTCT

Maternal dietary diversity and pattern during pregnancy is associated with low infant birth weight in the Cape Coast metropolitan hospital, Ghana: A hospital based cross-sectional study

Background: This study investigated the associations between mother's dietary diversity score and dietary patterns during pregnancy and the odds of low birth weight at the Cape Coast Metropolitan Hospital in Ghana. Methods: Mothers attending the postnatal clinic from January to August 2016 at the Cape Coast Metropolitan Hospital were included. Dietary information during pregnancy was assessed with a food frequency questionnaire. In reference to the women's dietary diversity score, women were categorized into low, medium or high dietary diversity score groups. The primary outcome was low birth weight and was defined as weight <2500 g at birth. Factor analysis was conducted to identify maternal dietary patterns and a multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to determine the associations between dietary diversity score and dietary patterns with low birth weight. Results: The prevalence of low birth weight in infants was 43.8% (95% CI = 39%–49%). After adjusting for covariates, the odds of low birth weight was four times higher in the low dietary diversity score group compared to the high dietary diversity score group (odds ratio [OR] = 4.29, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.24–6.48). Three dietary patterns namely "Western", “Traditional” and "Healthy", which explained 58.23% of the total variance in food intake were identified. The subjects in the highest quartiles of “healthy” and “traditional” dietary pattern scores had significantly lower odds of low birth weight (healthy: OR = 0.23, 95% CI, 0.19–0.39, P trend <0.0001; traditional: OR = 0.14, 95% CI, 0.06–0.35, P trend <0.0001, respectively) compared to those in the lowest quartiles of dietary pattern score. Conclusion: Low dietary diversity score during pregnancy was associated with higher odds of infant low birth weight whereas dietary patterns considered as “healthy” and “traditional” during pregnancy were associated with lower odds of infant low birth weight. Findings of this study suggests that higher dietary diversity and “healthy” and “traditional” dietary patterns during pregnancy may be protective of LBW in the study area