Exploring Possibilities to Enhance Food Sovereignty within the Cowpea Production-Consumption Network in Northern Ghana

Over the last years an important focus in the combat of hunger and malnutrition,particularly in Africa has been food security. This article explores possibilities for enhancing food sovereignty, as an alternative concept to food security and an alternative strategy for reversing hunger and malnutrition trends in developing countries. A combination of literature review, participatory appraisal and conventional survey methodologies are used to investigate the relevance of local cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) network regarding its importance vis-à-vis other crops, varietal choice, and consumption patterns in Northern Ghana from food sovereignty perspective. Findings reveal how people in poverty-stricken and hunger- hot- spot communities strive to conserve their biodiversity and production-consumption networks for posterity. Local cowpea varietal preferences are investigated for participatory breeding considerations to improve on seed access for sustainable production. Promotion of origin-based foods in the current fast growing globalised markets is recommended as a possibility to enhance food sovereignty for sustainable development in Afric

Child Labour in Sub-Saharan Africa : Empirical Evidence and New Perspectives

The eradication of child labour will enhance human capital development and provide a means for sustainable development for the affected countries. However, child labour has persisted despite a significant reduction in monetary poverty in sub-Saharan Africa. The thesis uses econometric techniques to answer three research questions on why the problem persists. First, I study the effect of changes in food prices on child labour. In the second empirical chapter, the thesis examines how agricultural subsidies affect child labour. This chapter is motivated by the widespread use of input subsidies to mitigate the effects of higher food prices on households. The last empirical chapter analyses the effect of relative deprivation on child labour. That chapter extends earlier findings that changes in food prices and the distribution of subsidised inputs affect subjective well-being. The main findings of the study are: (i) an increase in food prices leads to an increase in child labour. (ii) child labour is higher among households which benefit from the subsidised inputs, and (iii) relatively deprived households are more likely to engage in child labour. In addition, the study further notes heterogeneities in the observed effects regarding household characteristics. For instance, changes in food prices have lower effect among landowning households. Also, children living in small-scale farm households are more affected by the subsidised inputs than those in large-scale farm households. These results mean that both economic shocks and governments’ policies may explain why the problem has persisted in the sub-region. Based on the findings, the study recommends that policymakers should include labour-saving technologies to the productivity-enhancing inputs to reduce the unintended impact of the programme on child labour. Policy interven tions should also consider the heterogeneity of the effects of food price shocks in order not to worsen its inequality and child labour effects

Profiles of Canadian Postsecondary Education Dropouts

Using longitudinal data of 18- to 20-year-old youths from the Youth in Transition Survey (YITS), the present analysis identified and profiled Canadian postsecondary education dropouts based on the theoretical framework of Tinto (1993). Pertaining to characteristics of pre-postsecondary education conditions, dropouts tended to be male, set low postsecondary education goals, and have a history of dropping out and drug abuse in high school. Pertaining to characteristics of postsecondary education integration, dropouts demonstrated a first-year postsecondary education GPA of 60% or lower, an avoidance of volunteering on campus, and a lack of personal connections on campus. In addition, dropouts have previously contemplated quitting, have low sense of belonging, rely on social assistance, have neither institutional scholarships nor parental loans, are married, and are pursuing postsecondary programs in trade schools or technical schools. Integration into postsecondary education is far more critical to student attrition than pre-postsecondary education conditions.   Puisant dans les données longitudinales d’une enquête de Statistique Canada auprès des jeunes en transition (Youth in Transition Survey), notamment la cohorte des 18 à 20 ans, la présente analyse a identifié et souligné, selon le cadre théorique de Tinto (1993), les individus ayant décroché en cours d’études postsecondaires. Ceux qui décrochent avant les études postsecondaires sont souvent masculins, ils se fixent des objectifs limités relatifs aux études supérieures et ont des antécédents impliquant des abandons scolaires et la toxicomanie au secondaire. Parmi les caractéristiques des décrocheurs au niveau postsecondaire, notons une moyenne globale inférieure ou équivalente à 60% lors de leur première année d’études supérieures, une absence de participation aux activités bénévoles sur le campus et un manque de liens personnels sur le campus. De plus, les décrocheurs ont souvent déjà pensé à abandonner, manifestent un faible sentiment d’appartenance, comptent sur l’assistance sociale, n’ont pas reçu de bourses institutionnelles ni de prêts de la part de leurs parents, sont mariés et poursuivent des études postsecondaires dans des écoles techniques ou des écoles de métiers. L’intégration joue un rôle beaucoup plus critique dans le taux d’abandon des étudiants au niveau postsecondaire qu’au secondaire

Sustainable Postharvest Processing and Value-addition of Aquacultured Seaweed

The annual growth rate of harvested edible seaweed in the United States’ developing seaweed aquaculture sector leaped from 8% in 2014 to a predicted 18 – 25% from 2019 – 2025 due to increased demand. For continuous growth of the edible seaweed market, addressing challenges in food safety, perishability, processing, and product development are vital. The specific objectives of this research were to: 1) evaluate the effect of pre-freezing blanching procedures on the qualities of frozen sugar kelp, 2) evaluate the impact of blanching, freezing and fermentation on kelp quality, 3) determine the effect of rehydration temperatures on kelp quality, and 4) evaluate the survival of four pathogens inoculated on kelp stored at different temperatures. For objective one, whole blade and shredded sugar kelp were subjected to different blanching methods, temperatures, and times, prior to one-year frozen storage. Blanching resulted in relatively higher quality frozen product than unblanched frozen kelp. Vacuum-packed blanching at higher temperature for longer time resulted in good kelp quality for at least six months of frozen storage. In objective two, blanching and freezing positively impacted kelp quality and consumer acceptability of kelp salad. Fermenting kelp to produce sauerkraut showed promise for new product development, and freezing prior to fermentation did not impact the overall liking scores of kelp sauerkraut. Results confirm that frozen storage is an acceptable practice prior to further value addition of kelp. Dried kelp was rehydrated at three different water temperatures. Rehydration time decreased as initial water temperature was increased. Most kelp qualities were not notably different among rehydration treatments. However, rehydrated kelp was greener and less chewy than raw kelp, which may positively affect its consumer acceptability. In the last study, all four pathogens survived storage regardless of the temperature. Survival for all species was greatest at 22 \u3e 10 \u3e 4 °C storage. Results confirm the need for strict adherence to temperature control, and adoption of supplemental measures to enhance product safety. These studies provide valuable information for extending the shelf-life of sugar kelp and producing high quality products, which are vital to the growing seaweed industry and for consumers of seaweed products

Developing authentic foodservices to support the development of tourist attractions in Ghana.

Foodservice outlets have the potential to enhance the experience of visitors to a wide range of visitor attractions. As such introducing authentic foodservice outlets could potentially play significant role in the development of cultural-heritage and natural attractions in Ghana. Consuming local traditional foods leave nostalgic, memorable feelings, which create 'golden locations' and in turn encourage repeat visits and increase visitor traffic at these locations. The foodservice sector has however, been supported in Ghana generally and has been largely ignored at visitor attractions. In situations where foodservice outlets are limited, visitors can potentially find themselves unable to purchase any refreshments at the attractions. This detracts from their experience and discourages repeat visits. The main aim of this thesis is critically to evaluate the integration of foodservice at Ghanaian visitor attractions and to identify a suitable approach for developing authentic foodservice outlets at the sites. This thesis derived data from both secondary and primary research. With the lack of available data and records on Ghanaian visitor attractions and foodservice operations, the primary data collection exercise used a mixed-method approach in a two-Phase study over a one-year period. An exploratory survey of visitor attractions and foodservice operations in the research area, which also involved focus groups (n=56) and individual (n=6) interviews, within the academia and with stakeholders of tourism and foodservice sectors. Based on the findings of the Phasel study, the Phase2 study, involved a visitor survey (n=528) at six selected visitor attractions. A follow-up interview was conducted with attractions and foodservice personnel (n=24) at the attractions where the survey was conducted. The findings of the research have confirmed that the Ghanaian tourism industry has overlooked foodservice sector in the development of tourism and particularly at visitor attractions. It also established the importance of foodservice as part of the overall experiences at visitor attractions. It proposes independent! multi-owned/ franchises as the best alternative approaches for developing and integrating authentic foodservice outlets with Ghanaian visitor attractions. Therefore, the study proposes introducing formally trained staff to the informal traditional foodservice outlets to develop authentic foodservice outlets at visitor attractions as a positive way to support the tourism industry in Ghana. It also suggests that the proposals made to address the current situation in Ghana may be applicable to other countries in Africa seeking to develop sectors of their economies and be of interest to the relevant and the international bodies such as UNWTO, UNDP, and UNEP who seek to promote the development of sustainable tourism practices

Mental disorder stigma among Scottish university students

Many studies have investigated university students’ attitudes to people with mental disorder (PMD) but most have used medical student participants. No Scottish studies were found on this topic where students of a broad range of subjects had participated. A mixed methods research design was employed where the topic was qualitatively explored (n = 3) prior to quantification of perspectives via questionnaire use (n = 642). Only 10.3% of questionnaire respondents agreed that PMD tended to be more violent than others and only 3.7% believed keeping PMD in psychiatric hospitals made the campus safer. Over 94% disagreed that PMD caused their problems, but 20.3% disagreed that PMD often improved with treatment. Almost 4% reported unwillingness to work on a class project with PMD. Science students were significantly more likely than arts students to view PMD as: violent, unpredictable, blameworthy for their condition, people who should be kept away from campus, causing them to feel unsafe. International students were more likely to ‘strongly agree’ than European Union (EU) students that PMD should be kept off the campus. EU students were more willing to work on a class project with PMD than international students were. Postgraduate students exhibited several more negative attitudes than undergraduates; being more likely to see PMD as violent and less likely to work on a class project with PMD. The need for mental disorder stigma related education among students at Scottish universities should be assessed

Quality Assurance in the Hospitality Industry: Ghanaian Standpoint

The Ghanaian hospitality industry has seen a credible turnaround over the past few years. The nation is bestowed with lots of beautiful monuments such as castles, forts, waterfalls, mountains, umbrella rock and others which attract lot of tourists into the country every year. Hospitality is an integral part of human life, whether in a commercial scale or in small scale.  Although, the industry is perceived to be flourishing as new structures are being put up every day, it is yet to strike a major impact in the country as compared to other hospitality businesses like the hotels in different African countries. The study examines the impact of quality on hospitality businesses, the participation of staff and employees in contributing to quality of services, to identify the link between quality and customer satisfaction. The researchers used non probability sampling techniques in carrying out this research. Both accidental and purposive samplings were used. The results of the study indicate that, ensuring quality is of great importance to customers and companies as well. On a whole it is one of the basis of  growth in the economy because it brings cash inflows to the economy through tourism attraction. The study found that there is room for improvement in the service delivery to customers. The practical implications of these findings are discussed. Keywords: Quality, Hospitality, Service, Customer Satisfactio