Exploring Some Social Dimensions to the Practice and Sustainability of Traditional Conservation Agriculture in Semi-Arid Ghana

This paper identifies and examines the social factors driving the continuous use of traditional farming techniques hereforth referred to as traditional conservation agriculture by smallholder farmers in two Districts; Tolon in Northern and Wa West in Upper West Regions of Ghana. The influence of the identified social drivers was tested against field-based evidence in purposively selected case study communities in the Tolon and Wa West Districts. The study employs a multi-stage sampling approach to select two categories of farmers (those known to be dominantly employing traditional farming techniques and (ii) those who employ less or no traditional farming techniques in their farms) for this survey. Using a structured questionnaire, a total of 80 farmers were sampled and interviewed. Focus group discussions with the two categories of farmers and farm visits were undertaken to triangulate and validate individual responses. Data from the two study districts were analyzed using descriptive statistical techniques (frequency, percentages and bar charts) in Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS). Results gathered revealed a discernible and significant relationship between the continual practice of traditional conservation agriculture and social factors including gender, age, education, household size and income. Other factors including farm size, labour costs, low capital requirements, declining soil fertility, low yield due to increasing climatic variability and dearth of external institutional support emerged as key drivers influencing the practice and sustainability of traditional conservation agriculture. This study calls for the re-examination of the efforts to transfer formal conservation agriculture practices to local communities by adopting a synergistic approach. Keywords: Traditional Conservation Agriculture, Northern Ghana, Smallholder Farmers, Gender, Sustainabilit

Village Midline Study – Site Analysis Report for Doggoh, Lawra-Jirapa, Ghana (GH-0108)

The village midline survey (VMS) was carried out from the 2nd -12th July, 2018 in Doggoh village. The aim of the VMS was to assess the performance of the indicators around natural resource, organizational landscape and information networks and the changes that have occurred since the baseline (VBS) in 2011. A participatory approach was adopted. Whole community for a were conducted and later, focus group discussions (FGD) were held separately for men and women. The men and women were purposively sampled during the whole community meeting, after which 15 members were randomly selected for each category. The protocols that were used during the VBS were the same ones used for this VMS

Evaluating team project-work using triangulation:lessons from communities in northern Ghana

This paper uses triangulation to assess key aspects of a team-based, participatory action research programme for undergraduates in rural communities across northern Ghana. The perceptions of the programme and its effects on the students, staff and host communities are compared, showing areas of agreement and disagreement. The successes of the programme (particularly the students' development) and areas for improvement (student preparation and follow-up actions) are set out. We consider how this programme might be used in other contexts. Advantages include impact on students and moral value: disadvantages include cost and timetabling. The merits of a triangulation approach to evaluation are discussed

Shea (Vitellaria paradoxa) Butter Production and Resource Use by Urban and Rural Processors in Northern Ghana

This article explores the use of field experimentation in presenting an account of input inventory, material quantities, and the process flow for shea butter production in Ghana. The shea fruit is a non-timber forest product (NTFP) that is indigenous to ecosystems in semi-arid regions of Africa. Current methods and equipment for processing shea kernel into butter impose a dilemma of excessive harvesting of fuel wood for heating and the use of large quantities of water. Thus, the nature of input requirement and production process presents implications for conflict over natural resource use and for sustainability as more processing takes place. Material flow analysis was applied to the data generated from the processing experiments. The outcome was discussed in focus group discussion sessions and individual interviews as a way of data triangulation to validate study parameters. Results from this experiment showed that the quantity of water used in urban processing sites was higher than that used in rural sites. On the other hand, fuel wood use and labor expended were found to be higher in rural sites per unit processing cycle. The nature of the processing equipment, accessibility to input resources, and target market for shea butter were key determinants of the varying resource quantities used in the production process

Women Perception of Service Quality at Antiretroviral Therapy Centres in Ghana: Evidence from Ashanti Region

In Ghana, the number of  HIV positive women who received a complete course of ART for PMTCT has been very low and inconsistent over the last three years In the Ashanti Region,  only 22.2% of HIV positive women in need received ART  attended ART centres for medication  in 2010. Certainly, appropriate strategy is required to improve use of ART centres. Thus the study aimed at exploring HIV positive women perception of ART centres specifically service quality and its implication on their use of ART centres. The study was conducted in three out of eight ART centres in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. Data was collected from a total of 265 HIV positive women who had being on ARVs for treatment or prophylaxis technique. The respondents were randomly sampled for the study. The data was collected using semi structured questionnaires and focus group discussions (FGDs) using tape recorders and interviews guides. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16 was used to analyse the data. Generally the respondents perceived the service quality as satisfactory as they are  satisfied with the care given them by the staff of the ART centres. However,   Long waiting times, unavailability of drugs and lack of follow ups have been mentioned by the respondents are key barriers to barriers to ART centre attendance by the respondents. Thus efforts should be made to reduce waiting time of patients, and make drug available. Future study should be a multidimensional study which would critically examine all barriers influencing access to ART. Keywords: ART, PMTCT, HIV, Women, Ghan

Promoting Community-Based Extension Agents as an Alternative Approach to Formal Agricultural Extension Service Delivery in Northern Ghana

The CBEA concept is an alternative to community-based extension intervention aimed at addressing the inadequacy of formal extension services provision to rural poor farmers of the Northern Regions of Ghana. The study sought to find out the extent to which the Community-Based Extension Agent has improved access to extension services to rural farmers. The study used qualitative and quantitative methods such as, Focus Group Discussions, Key Informants, In-depth interviews, Household and Institutional Questionnaires to collect and analyses data. The findings are that: there are vibrant Community Based Extension Agents established providing extension services in crop, livestock and environmental issues in the study District; farmers groups are linked to external agents and other stakeholders for access to credit facilities; the CBEAs were found to be the main link between the community and external agents; the most dominant extension services delivery carried out by the CBEAs in the entire study district were in crop production, livestock production and bushfire management; there are well established criteria for selecting Community Based Extension Agents, and community Based Extension Agents were least motivated. The study recommends among others that: motivation packages such as bicycles would facilitate the movement CBEAs to reach out to majority of the farmers. There is also the need to link CBEAs to relevant institutions/organizations for support and establishment of mechanisms to generate funds to support activities. Finally, stakeholders and organization need to intensify community sensitization and awareness creation on activities of CBEAs