Disease of cowpea and other legumes caused by Pseudocercospora cruenta and Cercospora canescens

Imperial Users onl

Knowledge of nutrition facts on food labels and their impact on food choices on consumers in Koforidua, Ghana: A case study

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate consumers’ knowledge of food labels and how this knowledge guides their decisions when making purchasing choices with regard to food.Design: This was a descriptive research design study.Setting: The setting was the suburb of Koforidua Municipality in the Eastern region of Ghana.Subjects: One hundred and forty-three customers were observed in store from four randomly sampled supermarkets. One hundred of these customers completed a self-administered questionnaire.Outcome measures: Measurements included observation and a  self-administered questionnaire that elicited information on label-readinghabits, attitudes towards health awareness and the influence of food labels on food choices. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics.Results: Sixty-five of the 100 consumers (54 females and 46 males) who consented to respond to the questionnaire looked at or read food labels before selecting a food to purchase. Seventy-five per cent reported reading the food labels prior to selecting food. This study found that nutrition knowledge had a low to average impact on consumers’ food choices. Half of the consumers who reported reading the food labels did not do so regularly. This could have implications on how often such information is used when purchasing food. Also, only 22% of the study respondents answered correctly when asked to explain “26% RDA (recommended dietary allowance) vitamin A per serving” on a food label, even though 45% of the respondents had a tertiary education.Conclusion: These findings indicate awareness and knowledge of food labelling which may not always adequately impact on food choices, even though study respondents indicated high awareness and low to average reading of labels prior to purchasing food

Retirement policies and economic security for older people in Africa

Major features and limitations of social insurance and retirement programmes in Africa are examined. The relationship between formal and informal security systems is explored and the role of communities, non-governmental organizations and employer-based private pension schemes for retired older Africans is highlighted. In addition, social, health, gender inequity and long-term care services are discussed, the provision of which could enhance the well-being of older Africans

The elderly in rural Ghana: health-care needs and challenges

The health-care needs of elderly persons who live in rural areas of Ghana are considered. Brief socio-demographic information on the population is given. Barriers and challenges to the provision of health care to the population are examined. The Ghanaian pluralistic health system is described briefly. Finally, measures are proposed to meet the challenges of providing health care to the elderly rural population

Race and the Impact of Parental Incarceration on Childhood Outcomes

Using Waves I and IV of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health), this thesis analyzes the relationship between parental incarceration and adverse life outcomes. More specifically, I examine the associations between parental incarceration and education, depressive symptoms, and criminal justice involvement. Using binomial logistic regression, I examine the differences between youth that had an incarcerated parent (mother, father, or both) compared to not having a parent incarcerated. Results indicate that Individuals experiencing parental incarceration were statistically more likely to experience negative outcomes compared to those that have not experienced parental incarceration

Experimental data on Helically Coiled Oscillating Heat Pipe (HCOHP) design and thermal performance

Experimental and derived data from three Helically Coiled Oscillating Heat Pipes (HCOHPs) charged with ethanol, methanol and deionized water working fluids respectively are presented. The data was obtained from prototypes of the HCOHPs fabricated out of copper and tested under laboratory conditions. The primary data presented covers the HCOHP aspects, charging of the working fluid and temperature measurements from Omega K-type Thermocouples installed on the evaporators, condensers, adiabatic sections, and on the cylindrical copper vessel integrated with it. The derived data covers the HCOHPs performances and thermal contact resistance experienced during laboratory testing. The data on the aspects and charging of the working fluid provides useful information for the validation of design parameters of other heat pipes. The measured temperature data and the derived performance data can used to validate the performance of heat pipes in other studies and to depict performance profiles in standard text and reference books. The nature of the data presented as a whole would be useful for comparative analysis involving heat pipes and other passive heat transfer devices

Factors contributing to recidivism among inmates in selected Ghana prisons

Frank Baffour employed the critical social work theory, social learning theory, and labelling perspective to explore factors contributing to recidivism in selected prisons in Ghana. Qualitative data were collected from 53 participants including 25 prison inmates who had served two or more terms of incarceration, 15 prison officers, and 13 community members. Findings suggest that reincarceration of the inmates was caused by systemic failures (overcrowding and inadequate rehabilitation) in the prisons and structural inequality in the community (labelling). Policy and practice implications are discussed

A Coordination-Based Approach to Subnational Variations in Split-Ticket Voting: The Case of Ghana 1996-2016

This dissertation seeks to explain the causes of split-ticket voting (skirt and blouse voting) in emerging democracies like Ghana. The analysis carried out here has been approached at three levels. This is because voters’ decisions in the voting booth are affected by factors within the larger political environment which are often beyond the individual voter. Thus, the three approaches employed here consider individual-level, constituency-level, and elite-level factors that affect the phenomenon. In each case different datasets were used to examine split-ticket voting. The analysis reveals that the individual-level factors (demographic characteristics and political information variables) are weak in explaining ticket splitting. Aside from their statistically weak relationship with ticket splitting, they are inconsistent in explaining the phenomenon. The most important factors shaping split-ticket voting, however, operate at the elite-level, and are coordination based. Using the Afrobarometer survey, constituency level electoral data, and a fieldwork survey, the analysis finds elite-level factors which are based on coordination successes and failures within and between parties as the best predictors of ticket splitting. The reason for this is that elite coordination successes and failures affect the available choice sets at any given election and these largely affect ticket splitting. I argue that differences in ticket splitting are better explained by variation in the degree of coordination among elite actors than by variation in characteristics of individual voters such as political sophistication

Performance of an integrated solar absorption cooling system in a sub-tropical region

Evaluation of an integrated solar absorption cooling system located in a sub-tropical region has been carried out. Analysis of the results revealed an operational efficiency of 61% for the solar collectors at a mean differential temperature forumla of 51°C when compared with the manufacturer's rating of 70% at 60°C. The absorption chiller did, however, perform quite satisfactorily and achieved a coefficient of performance of 0.69 when compared with the manufacturer's rating of 0.7. There is however the need for the hot water supply system to be optimized as well as provision for supplementary heat source in order to maintain the appropriate operating temperature during low solar radiation levels