The Importance of the Informal Sector of Ghana to Savings and Loans Companies

The informal sector plays a critical and controversial role. It provides jobs and reduces unemployment and underemployment, but in many cases the jobs are low-paid and the job security is poor. It bolsters entrepreneurial activity, but at the detriment of state regulations compliance, particularly regarding tax and labor regulations. In the mist of this controversy, a growing number of savings and loans companies have made the sector their primary target. It was therefore necessary to conduct a research to investigate the importance of the informal sector to savings and loans companies. The objectives of the research were to examine the risks of the informal sector to savings and loans companies, to examine the benefits of the informal sector to savings and loans companies and to assess relationship between the informal sector and savings and loans companies. The research adopted both probability and non-probability sampling methods. A quota of 15 respondents was given to each of the four companies namely Procredit, Ezi, Opportunity and Garden City Savings and Loans companies. Then the purposive and simple random techniques were used to select the 15 respondents of each company. The purposive technique was used to select accountants and marketers of the companies. This was due to the category involvement, knowledge and experience. The simple random technique ensured that each respondent stood an equal chance of being selected. The sample size for the study was 60. The research found out that the informal sector is highly important to savings and loans companies in Ghana as the benefits of doing business with them far out-weighs the associated costs. Key words: Informal sector, Savings and loan

The Relationship between Mixing and Stratification Regime on the Phytoplankton of Lake Bosomtwe (Ghana), West Africa

The seasonal changes in the phytoplankton community in terms of biomass composition and associated physicochemical parameters of the Lake Bosomtwe (Ghana) located in West Africa were studied between 2004 and 2006 to assess the mixing and stratification regime of the lake on the phytoplankton dynamics. From water samples obtained from a central index station, biomass composition was assessed by converting phytoplankton counts to wet weights-based approximation into cell volume values; whiles mixed layer and euphotic depths were analyzed using temperature and light profiles of the lake respectively. Total phosphorus was estimated using the Ascorbic Acid Method. Results from the dataset showed that the phytoplankton biomass was dominated by the Cyanophyceae throughout the study period despite the seasonal changes associated with the mixing and stratification regimes. There were significant inter-annual differences in the mean values of the euphotic depth and the wet weight biomass (P < 0.05). However differences in the mean values of the mixed layer depth, the ratio of the mixed layer depth:euphotic depth, and total phosphorus concentration (P > 0.05) were insignificant. High variations in the mixed layer depth (CV > 34 %) and the euphotic depth (CV > 32) drive similarly high variations in the wet weight biomass (CV > 28) as is the case for many stratifying tropical lakes. However, both were poor predictors of the phytoplankton wet weight biomass behaviour (mixed layer depth, r2 = 0.1034; euphotic depth, r

The Importance of Supplier Segmentation to the Manufacturing Sector of Ghana

This study investigated the importance of Supplier Segmentation to the manufacturing sector of Ghana; using selected manufacturing companies the in Eastern and Volta regions of Ghana as case study. Managing relationships between a supplier and buyer can be a complex one. Each party seeks to maximize its time, resources, and cash investment; these may be competing priorities that can strain the relationship. While certain companies adopt a more collaborative approach in dealing with suppliers, others too adopt a take it or leave it approach. In the midst of this controversy, it became necessary to conduct a research to assess the importance of supplier segmentation which has been hailed as a key component of Supplier Relationship Management. The case studies for this study were the management of Volta Star Company Ltd, Akosombo Textiles and the Intravenous infusions Limited. Based on the simple random, purposive, and quota sampling techniques 60 managers from these companies were sampled. The study revealed that Supplier Segmentation is highly important to the Ghanaian manufacturing sector. Key words: Supplier Relationship Management, Supplier Segmentatio

Seasonality of Primary productivity of phytoplankton of Lake Bosomtwe, Ghana -West Africa

The primary productivity and seasonality of phytoplankton and its seasonality in Lake Bosomtwe (Ghana), West Africa were studied from September 2005 to August 2006 using the dissolved oxygen method. The wet weight biomass (0.41±0.37 gCm-2d-1, n=25), Chlorophyll a (52.11±19.51 mg m-2, n=17), mixed layer depth (9.28±3.47 m, n=25), euphotic depth (4.43±1.76 m, n=25), ratio of mixed layer to euphotic depth (2.17±0.74, n=25), secchi disc depth (1.52±0.34 m, n=25), irradiance (1180±341.28 µE m-2s-1, n=25), extinction coefficient (0.97±0.46, n=25), and total phosphorus concentrations (1.84±0.49 µmol L-1, n=20) were measured to assess their influence on the productivity of the phytoplankton. Our assessment revealed high areal gross productivity of the phytoplankton (4.72 ± 1.56 gC m-2 d-1, n = 25) which is within the range for tropical African lakes, but concurrent high areal community respiration rates (4.34 ± 2.78 gC m-2 d-1, n = 25) contributed to a low net productivity (0.37 ± 2.32 gC m-2 d-1, n = 25) and growth rates (0.14 ± 0.33 d-1, n = 21). Variabilities in the gross productivity of the phytoplankton were high (CV =33.10 %) and driven by similarly high variabilities in the physicochemical and biological parameters. Productivity also exhibited clear seasonality associated with the mixing and stratification of the lake. The physicochemical and biological parameters (mixed layer depth, euphotic depth, secchi disc depth, irradiance, chlorophyll a, and the community respiration) all had a positive relationship with the primary production) whiles ratio of mixed layer to euphotic depth, total phosphorus, wet weigh biomass had a negative relationship with the gross productivity. Of all the measured parameters, only areal community respiration (r2 = 30.6 %) had a significant predictive value (r2 < 0.05).

Concurrent Acquisition of a Single Nucleotide Polymorphism in Diverse Influenza H5N1 Clade 2.2 Sub-clades

Highly pathogenic Influenza A H5N1 was first identified in Guangdong Province in 1996, followed by human cases in Hong Kong in 1997 1,2. The number of confirmed human cases now exceeds 300 and the associated Case Fatality Rate exceeds 60% 3. The genetic diversity of the serotype continues to increase. Four distinct clades or sub-clades have been linked to human cases 4-7. The gradual genetic changes identified in the sub-clades have been attributed to copy errors by viral encoded polymerases that lack an editing function, thereby resulting in antigenic drift 8. We report here the concurrent acquisition of the same polymorphism by multiple, genetically distinct, clade 2.2 sub-clades in Egypt, Russia, Kuwait, and Ghana. These changes are not easily explained by the current theory of “random mutation” through copy error, and are more easily explained by recombination with a common source. The recombination role is further supported by the high fidelity replication in swine influenza 9 and aggregation of single nucleotide polymorphisms in H5N1 clade 2.2 hemagglutinin 10

Effect of added dietary lysine and methionine above recommended levels, on growth performance, breast meat yield and financial returns in broilers

This study investigated the effect of added lysine and methionine above recommended levels in broiler diets, on their growth, breast meat yield and financial returns. A total of 175 one-day-old Cobb 500 chicks were assigned to seven dietary treatments in a completely randomized design. Treatment one (T1) was a control diet formulated to breed specifications. Treatments two (T2) and three (T3) contained 1.2 times recommended levels of Lys and Met respectively. Treatment four (T4) contained Lys and Met at 1.2 times recommended levels. Treatments five (T5) to seven (T7) had similar combinations of Lys and Met as T2 to T4 but their inclusions were 1.4 times recommended levels. On day 43 five birds per treatment were slaughtered for breast meat yield measurements. Broilers on T6 had heavier (P<0.05) breast meat (691.6 g) and tenderloin weights (126.4 g) compared to birds on T1 (491.2 and 93.8 g respectively). The premium on the price of breast meat more than offset the added feed cost of the nutrient dense diets. However, if the finished dressed broilers are to be sold whole and uncut, this trial showed that it is better to feed the birds at the manufacturers recommended levels of Lys and Met. Keywords: Lysine; Methionine; Broilers; Breastmeat; Financial analysi

Levels Program: A Career Ladder for Support Staff

ObjectiveHow do we manage support staff development in the modern health sciences library? Increasingly, the need for more highly skilled staff is evident. This poster describes a three phase project encompassing the development, approval, and implementation processes necessary to make a career ladder a reality in a medium-sized academic health sciences library. MethodsThe Management Team gathered information from library literature and business and government sources as a starting point. In the development phase, the team posed questions as the foundation for developing a competency-based program to manage support staff development. e.g., What will support staff be doing in the future? Can we define the competencies staff will need? How do we create a flexible system that keeps us poised to respond to change? How do we build a skilled work force and prepare current staff to take on new tasks? How do we develop a measurement framework for objective employee evaluation? In the approval phase, the emphasis was on educating the university’s administration, HR, and the union about the library’s strategic direction and the benefits of the plan to staff. The implementation phase focused on staff buy-in, roll-out timing, and developing training to ensure success for current and future staff. Results and ConclusionsCompetencies, education, and years of service formed the promotion plan’s basis. Managers identified task-based areas of responsibility, divided into achievement stages with frameworks detailed for objective employee evaluation. A policy for advancement, based on performance in multiple areas of responsibility, was developed. The plan allows for growth and promotion, and encourages staff to build a knowledge base across library departments. Throughout the planning process the team met with human resources, the union, and administration to explain program goals, as well as to address their concerns and incorporate their input as we developed the program details, resulting in a smooth approval process. For implementation, one manager assumed responsibility for coordinating orientation and training development. The team was surprised by initial negative staff reaction to increased responsibility and the certification/testing requirements. The team continues to face implementation challenges and issues. Presented at the Medical Library Association Annual Meeting on May 18, 2008, in Chicago, IL

Sickle Cell Disease and H3Africa: Enhancing Genomic Research on Cardiovascular Diseases in African Patients.

Sickle cell disease (SCD) has a high prevalence in sub-Saharan Africa. There are several cardiovascular phenotypes in SCD that contribute to its morbidity and mortality. SCD is characterised by marked clinical variability, with genetic factors playing key modulating roles. Studies in Tanzania and Cameroon have reported that singlenucleotide polymorphisms in BCL11A and HBS1L-MYB loci and co-inheritance of alpha-thalassaemia impact on foetal haemoglobin levels and clinical severity. The prevalence of overt stroke among SCD patients in Cameroon (6.7%) and Nigeria (8.7%) suggests a higher burden than in high-income countries. There is also some evidence of high burden of kidney disease and pulmonary hypertension in SCD; however, the burden and genetics of these cardiovascular conditions have seldom been investigated in Africa. Several H3Africa projects are focused on cardiovascular diseases and present major opportunities to build genome-based research on existing SCD platforms in Africa to transform the health outcomes of patients