THE PROMOTION OF HEALTHY EATING IN CHILDREN THROUGH SCHOOL SNACK AND LUNCH PROGRAMS IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS IN SASKATOON

ABSTRACT School snack and lunch programs (SSLP) in Canada are of growing interest as solutions to the rising obesity and food insecurity are sought. SSLP offer nourishment to hungry students during school hours but they also have the ability to influence children’s eating habits, to establish sustainable and healthy eating patterns and to thereby prevent childhood overweight and obesity. The purpose of this multiple case study was to 1) gain an understanding of elementary school student and staff perceptions of school snacks and lunches, and 2) examine the impact of a SSLP on children’s food choices. Data was collected through a survey with the principals and community school coordinators of 13 elementary schools in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and group interviews with students who were the primary beneficiaries of a SSLP. Results showed that both students and staff had positive views of their schools’ snacks and lunches, and believed that the SSLP provides a platform for promoting healthy eating. This study also revealed that the SSLP may have motivated students to practice healthy eating both in and outside of school. The results reinforce the importance of school-based programs in promoting healthy lifestyles among children

Fresh University Students and Phone Use Preferences: The Perception of a Public University in Ghana

The current study was a case study in one of the public universities in Ghana to ascertain phone acquisition and use tendencies of first year university students in their first semester of university education. A sample size of 300 was used for the study. The findings indicated that all the 300 (100%) students had phones whilst 223 (74.3%) of them had smartphones with internet functionality. It was found out that there was a significant difference between first year university students’ time spent on phones, based on age. Again, there was a significant negative correlation between first year university students’ time spent on phones based on their age. Further, the study revealed that first year university students were more likely to spend one semester (four months) on their phones in a four-year programme. The implications for practice have been discussed. Keywords: cell phones use, classroom, phone acquisition, time, first year students

Improving the competitiveness and marketability of locally-produced rice in Ghana

Irrigated rice has been grown over a number of decades in Ghana on state-sponsored government irrigation projects. Over the years these projects have received extensive state support, as the government has attempted, through various initiatives, to achieve food self-sufficiency. The emphasis on promoting domestic rice production was enhanced by the growing importance of rice in the diet of the urban population, combined with technical assistance provided by donors, such as the Chinese. In addition, the promotion of state-sponsored, input-intensive agriculture reflected the Ghanaian government's past adherence to socialist development models

The Relationship between Bank Deposits and Macroeconomic Variables in Ghana: A Co-Integration Approach

This study examined the linkages between macroeconomic variables and how those relationships affect the total deposits of Ghanaian banks. The macroeconomic variables included in this study were Inflation (I), Monetary Policy Rate (MPR), Gross International Reserve (GIR), Public Debt (PD), Gross Domestic Product (GDP), GSE All share Index (GASI), Rate of change in Total Money Supply (M2+), deposits in the banking sector (TD). The study employed monthly data over the period (2015–2020); obtained from the Bank of Ghana monthly time series database. The data were analyzed using Gretl. The cointegration technique was employed in this study to gauge the long-term and short-term responsiveness of the connections. The ADF results indicated that the study variables were non-stationary. The econometric analysis suggested that the study variables, inflation (I), Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Public Debt level (PD), and Total Deposits (TD) in banks operating in Ghana, exhibited a significant positive long-run cointegration relationship. This suggested that the identified variables play a crucial role in explaining the fluctuations in total deposit levels within the Ghanaian banking industry. Bank deposit is strongly exogenous and moves to restore equilibrium through several short-run partial adjustments in the short-run. Also, in the short-run, only the GSE All-share index (GASI) significantly influenced bank deposits, but not in the long-run. In the long run, the relationship was still positive but insignificant

IMPROVEMENT OF SENIOR HIGH STUDENTS’ PERFORMANCE IN HEAT TRANSFER USING PRACTICAL ACTIVITIES IN EFFUTU MUNICIPAL, GHANA

This study investigated the integration of practical activities with theoretical lessons to improve students’ academic performance in the concept of heat transfer at A. M. E. Zion Girls’ Senior High School, Winneba, in the Central Region of Ghana. A sample of 50 female home economics students in SHS two was purposefully selected for the study. Questionnaires and test items were the main instruments used to collect data for the study. Students completed pre-intervention and post-intervention tests after using an interactive and hands-on instructional approach as an intervention. A descriptive statistical analysis was used to measure the trends in teaching and learning methods. Statistical differences between students' performance before and after the study were examined using the mean, standard deviation; t-test, mean gain, and effect size analysis to analyse the research questions. Student responses to the questionnaire revealed that 86% of the students understood the concept of heat transfer after the intervention and 94% of the study sample indicated that they would like to see physics lessons integrated with theory and hands-on activities. The average gain between pre- and post-intervention test scores was 3.74, with a p-value of 0.000** demonstrating the success of the intervention process. This study supports the use of instructional tools in the physics classroom and recommends the use of interactive hands-on activities to improve the student's academic performance.  Article visualizations

Technical Performance of Grid-Connected Rooftop Solar PVs

This paper presents a comprehensive analysis of the technical performance of grid-connected rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) systems deployed in five locations along the solar belt of Ghana, namely Sakumono, Wa, Bolgatanga, Kumasi, and Kintampo. These locations were selected based on their diverse environmental conditions, offering a representative sample for the study. The study utilized PVSyst software version 7.3 to simulate the performance of the PV systems for each location, using south orientation, which gives the best results in the tilted global irradiation across all locations. According to the simulation results, the average performance ratio for the five locations was 79.7%, indicating the PV systems' highly efficient utilization of the available solar energy. The average final yield, representing the actual energy output, was also measured to be 4.38 kWh/kWp/day for the studied locations.  This study demonstrates the technical feasibility of Ghana's grid-connected rooftop solar PV installations. The results underscore the significance of optimal system design and orientation, emphasizing the potential for substantial renewable energy generation. The insights obtained from this study can aid policymakers, investors, and solar energy stakeholders in making informed decisions to promote the widespread adoption of rooftop solar PV systems in the region

A randomized, open-label study of the tolerability and efficacy of one or three daily doses of ivermectin plus diethylcarbamazine and albendazole (IDA) versus one dose of ivermectin plus albendazole (IA) for treatment of onchocerciasis

BACKGROUND: Onchocerciasis ( river blindness ) has been targeted for elimination. New treatments that kill or permanently sterilize female worms could accelerate this process. Prior studies have shown that triple drug treatment with ivermectin plus diethylcarbamazine and albendazole (IDA) leads to prolonged clearance of microfilaremia in persons with lymphatic filariasis. We now report results from a randomized clinical trial that compared the tolerability and efficacy of IDA vs. a comparator treatment (ivermectin plus albendazole, IA) in persons with onchocerciasis. METHODS AND FINDINGS: The study was performed in the Volta region of Ghana. Persons with microfiladermia and palpable subcutaneous nodules were pre-treated with two oral doses of ivermectin (150 μg/kg) separated by at least 6 months prior to treatment with either a single oral dose of ivermectin 150 μg/kg plus albendazole 400 mg (IA), a single oral dose of IDA (IDA1, IA plus diethylcarbamazine (DEC. 6 mg/kg) or three consecutive daily doses of IDA (IDA3). These treatments were tolerated equally well. While adverse events were common (approximately 30% overall), no severe or serious treatment-emergent adverse events were observed. Skin microfilariae were absent or present with very low densities after all three treatments through 18 months, at which time nodules were excised for histological assessment. Nodule histology was evaluated by two independent assessors who were masked regarding participant infection status or treatment assignment. Significantly lower percentages of female worms were alive and fertile in nodules recovered from study participants after IDA1 (40/261, 15.3%) and IDA3 (34/281, 12.1%) than after IA (41/180, 22.8%). This corresponds to a 40% reduction in the percentage of female worms that were alive and fertile after IDA treatments relative to results observed after the IA comparator treatment (P = 0.004). Percentages of female worms that were alive (a secondary outcome of the study) were also lower after IDA treatments (301/574, 52.4%) than after IA (127/198, 64.1%) (P = 0.004). Importantly, some comparisons (including the reduced % of fertile female worms after IDA1 vs IA treatment, which was the primary endpoint for the study) were not statistically significant when results were adjusted for intraclass correlation of worm fertility and viability for worms recovered from individual study participants. CONCLUSIONS: Results from this pilot study suggest that IDA was well tolerated after ivermectin pretreatment. They also suggest that IDA was more effective than the comparator treatment IA for killing or sterilizing female O. volvulus worms. No other short-course oral treatment for onchocerciasis has been demonstrated to have macrofilaricidal activity. However, this first study was too small to provide conclusive results. Therefore, additional studies will be needed to confirm these promising findings. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The study is registered at Cinicaltrials.gov under the number NCT04188301