Corrupt Practices in the Construction Industry: A Survey of Ghanaian Experience

Across the globe, corruption presents a major risk that reduces construction project performances by inflating costs and reducing the quality of the infrastructure commissioned. In developing countries, corruption stifles economic development and engenders social inequality. Using a structured questionnaire survey to elicit direct knowledge and lived experiences of construction practitioners, this study uncovered the prevalence and forms of corrupt practices within the developing country of Ghana. Research findings illustrate that habitual corruption and unethical behavior prevail among public officials, contractors, and construction professionals during the bid evaluation, tendering, and contract implementation stages of a construction contract. This research proffers that corruption is driven by a toxic concoction of high political connections, excessive and reckless sole sourcing of public construction projects, lack of commitment by construction companies in addressing corruption, and the inherently idiosyncratic operational environment of the construction sector. The top five forms of corruption frequently encountered, in descending order, are kickbacks (extortion), bribery, collusion and tender rigging, conflict of interest, and fraud. This research presents a rare glimpse of construction industry corruption in a developing country and provides polemic clarity geared to intellectually challenge readers in government and industry. Future work is required to explore and develop appropriate countermeasures to address corrupt practices and behaviors

Barriers to green cities development in developing countries: evidence from Ghana

Purpose: Of late, cities across the globe are taking pragmatic steps towards addressing environmental, social, and economic problems in the debate on sustainable development. Even so, little attention has been paid to studies focused on developing countries. The aim of this study is to examine the barriers to green cities development in developing countries. Design/Methodology/Approach: A comprehensive literature review was conducted to examine the barriers to green cities development. In terms of methodological choice, a quantitative research strategy was used to collect data from professionals who have lines of influence on the greening of our cities and sustainable urban development. Findings: The barriers to green city development identified were: Lack of awareness of the benefits of a green city, Environmental Degradation, Insufficient policy implementation efforts, Excessive generation of solid waste, and Poor wastewater collection and treatment. It was indicative from the study findings that taking the right sustainable steps in urban development and a paradigm shift towards the pillars of sustainability, Ghanaian cities especially Kumasi has a great proclivity of regaining its longstanding status being “Garden City”. Practical and theoretical implications: The outcome of this study provides stakeholders in city development an insight into the barriers that inhibit the development of green cities. In practice, this study contributively proposes that the concept of green cities should be incorporated in the education and training of stakeholders to improve the level of awareness. Originality/value: This paper presents the foremost comprehensive study appraising green city development in Ghana

Housing attributes and relative house prices in Ghana

Purpose The study of house prices has become more relevant in recent times after the global financial crisis. Using a housing data set from three regions of Ghana (collated from real estate agents), the purpose of this paper is to estimate the relative importance of housing attributes to house prices. Design/methodology/approach The hedonic regression analysis conducted indicates that location is the most powerful determinant of house prices. Other relevant factors are the number of bedrooms, the number of floors, the total floor area, land size, age of the house and luxury finishing. Findings The implications of these results are many. Policy wise, the study provides an evidence-based empirical study that supports the need for better urban planning to improve communities, which in turn is associated with house price appreciations. Homeowners, investors and creditors, particularly mortgage lenders could be the immediate beneficiaries. Drawing on this, improved urban planning could mitigate strategic defaults that results from house prices falling below mortgage loan balances. This is important for financial market stability. Originality/value The paper provides a comprehensive and unique understanding of the hedonic determinants of house prices in Ghana. Future studies could examine the effect of location upon mortgage lending in Ghana

Attributable Indicators For Measuring The Level Of Greenness Of Cities In Developing Countries: Lessons From Ghana

Purpose: The advances in green city growth is widely discussed in extant literature. The benefits of green cities to urban development in recent discussions of sustainability and sustainable development is well-documented and cannot be overemphasized. Although a growing study on green building development in developing countries has been advanced in literature, a paucity of studies explores green cities in developing countries. Moreover, evidence of studies focused on green cities development in Ghana is lacking. From the identified knowledge gap, the aim of this study is to establish the indicators/attributes for measuring the level of greenness of cities in developing countries. Design/Methodology/Approach: A comprehensive literature review was conducted to identify the indicators/attributes for measuring the level of greenness of cities in developing countries. This study adopted the pragmatism as its undergirding research philosophy and the deductive research approach. In terms of methodological choice, quantitative research strategy was used to collect data from experts in sustainable urban development. The primary data retrieved from the study were analysed using Descriptive Statistics, Relative Importance Index, and One-sample t-test. The reliability and validity of the study were measured with the Cronbach’s Alpha test. Findings: The study established 8 indicators for measuring green city development: air quality, water, sanitation, land use, health and safety, transportation, energy as well as building and construction. It was discovered that the development of green cities should enhance air quality, improve water production and supply, improve management in sanitation, promote mixed and integrative land use, maintain the health and safety of city dwellers, reduce the demand for transportation and formalise public transport, adopt renewable and efficient energy technologies and promote sustainable construction and green buildings. These indicators are key to policy making and implementation of green cities development. Research Limitations/Implications: The study was focused in Ghana but not from other developing countries, however, the findings of this study do not limit the generalisability since the findings of the study can be used as a lesson to other developing countries. Practical and theoretical implications: Theoretically, this study adopted quantitative indicators that is reproducible in another geographical context. This study contributively adds to the discourse on sustainability especially in Ghana and as a source of reference to motivate others to conduct further research in related areas. The outcomes of this study will help the local government, policy makers, city stakeholders and industry expertise gain insights in the overall indicators that underpin green city development. Originality/value: This paper attempts to posit in literature the foremost appraisal of green city indicators adaptive in Ghana which could motivate other developing countries to develop their own green cities

Secondary bacterial infections of buruli ulcer lesions before and after chemotherapy with streptomycin and rifampicin

Buruli ulcer (BU), caused by Mycobacterium ulcerans is a chronic necrotizing skin disease. It usually starts with a subcutaneous nodule or plaque containing large clusters of extracellular acid-fast bacilli. Surrounding tissue is destroyed by the cytotoxic macrolide toxin mycolactone produced by microcolonies of M. ulcerans. Skin covering the destroyed subcutaneous fat and soft tissue may eventually break down leading to the formation of large ulcers that progress, if untreated, over months and years. Here we have analyzed the bacterial flora of BU lesions of three different groups of patients before, during and after daily treatment with streptomycin and rifampicin for eight weeks (SR8) and determined drug resistance of the bacteria isolated from the lesions. Before SR8 treatment, more than 60% of the examined BU lesions were infected with other bacteria, with Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa being the most prominent ones. During treatment, 65% of all lesions were still infected, mainly with P. aeruginosa. After completion of SR8 treatment, still more than 75% of lesions clinically suspected to be infected were microbiologically confirmed as infected, mainly with P. aeruginosa or Proteus miriabilis. Drug susceptibility tests revealed especially for S. aureus a high frequency of resistance to the first line drugs used in Ghana. Our results show that secondary infection of BU lesions is common. This could lead to delayed healing and should therefore be further investigated

Drivers for implementing green building technologies : an international survey of experts

2016-2017 > Academic research: refereed > Publication in refereed journal201804_a bcm

“Every Newborn-INDEPTH” (EN-INDEPTH) study protocol for a randomised comparison of household survey modules for measuring stillbirths and neonatal deaths in five Health and Demographic Surveillance sites

Background: Under-five and maternal mortality were halved in the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) era, with slower reductions for 2.6 million neonatal deaths and 2.6 million stillbirths. The Every Newborn Action Plan aims to accelerate progress towards national targets, and includes an ambitious Measurement Improvement Roadmap. Population-based household surveys, notably Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys, are major sources of population-level data on child mortality in countries with weaker civil registration and vital statistics systems, where over two-thirds of global child deaths occur. To estimate neonatal/child mortality and pregnancy outcomes (stillbirths, miscarriages, birthweight, gestational age) the most common direct methods are: (1) the standard DHS-7 with Full Birth History with additional questions on pregnancy losses in the past 5 years (FBH+) or (2) a Full Pregnancy History (FPH). No direct comparison of these two methods has been undertaken, although descriptive analyses suggest that the FBH+ may underestimate mortality rates particularly for stillbirths. Methods: This is the protocol paper for the Every Newborn-INDEPTH study (INDEPTH Network, International Network for the Demographic Evaluation of Populations and their Health Every Newborn, Every Newborn Action Plan), aiming to undertake a randomised comparison of FBH+ and FPH to measure pregnancy outcomes in a household survey in five selected INDEPTH Network sites in Africa and South Asia (Bandim in urban and rural Guinea-Bissau; Dabat in Ethiopia; IgangaMayuge in Uganda; Kintampo in Ghana; Matlab in Bangladesh). The survey will reach >68 000 pregnancies to assess if there is ≥15% difference in stillbirth rates. Additional questions will capture birthweight, gestational age, birth/death certification, termination of pregnancy and fertility intentions. The World Bank's Survey Solutions platform will be tailored for data collection, including recording paradata to evaluate timing. A mixed methods assessment of barriers and enablers to reporting of pregnancy and adverse pregnancy outcomes will be undertaken. Conclusions: This large-scale study is the first randomised comparison of these two methods to capture pregnancy outcomes. Results are expected to inform the evidence base for survey methodology, especially in DHS, regarding capture of stillbirths and other outcomes, notably neonatal deaths, abortions (spontaneous and induced), birthweight and gestational age. In addition, this study will inform strategies to improve health and demographic surveillance capture of neonatal/child mortality and pregnancy outcomes.Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF

Contributions of mean and shape of blood pressure distribution to worldwide trends and variations in raised blood pressure: A pooled analysis of 1018 population-based measurement studies with 88.6 million participants

© The Author(s) 2018. Background: Change in the prevalence of raised blood pressure could be due to both shifts in the entire distribution of blood pressure (representing the combined effects of public health interventions and secular trends) and changes in its high-blood-pressure tail (representing successful clinical interventions to control blood pressure in the hypertensive population). Our aim was to quantify the contributions of these two phenomena to the worldwide trends in the prevalence of raised blood pressure. Methods: We pooled 1018 population-based studies with blood pressure measurements on 88.6 million participants from 1985 to 2016. We first calculated mean systolic blood pressure (SBP), mean diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and prevalence of raised blood pressure by sex and 10-year age group from 20-29 years to 70-79 years in each study, taking into account complex survey design and survey sample weights, where relevant. We used a linear mixed effect model to quantify the association between (probittransformed) prevalence of raised blood pressure and age-group- and sex-specific mean blood pressure. We calculated the contributions of change in mean SBP and DBP, and of change in the prevalence-mean association, to the change in prevalence of raised blood pressure. Results: In 2005-16, at the same level of population mean SBP and DBP, men and women in South Asia and in Central Asia, the Middle East and North Africa would have the highest prevalence of raised blood pressure, and men and women in the highincome Asia Pacific and high-income Western regions would have the lowest. In most region-sex-age groups where the prevalence of raised blood pressure declined, one half or more of the decline was due to the decline in mean blood pressure. Where prevalence of raised blood pressure has increased, the change was entirely driven by increasing mean blood pressure, offset partly by the change in the prevalence-mean association. Conclusions: Change in mean blood pressure is the main driver of the worldwide change in the prevalence of raised blood pressure, but change in the high-blood-pressure tail of the distribution has also contributed to the change in prevalence, especially in older age groups

Rising rural body-mass index is the main driver of the global obesity epidemic in adults

Body-mass index (BMI) has increased steadily in most countries in parallel with a rise in the proportion of the population who live in cities(.)(1,2) This has led to a widely reported view that urbanization is one of the most important drivers of the global rise in obesity(3-6). Here we use 2,009 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight in more than 112 million adults, to report national, regional and global trends in mean BMI segregated by place of residence (a rural or urban area) from 1985 to 2017. We show that, contrary to the dominant paradigm, more than 55% of the global rise in mean BMI from 1985 to 2017-and more than 80% in some low- and middle-income regions-was due to increases in BMI in rural areas. This large contribution stems from the fact that, with the exception of women in sub-Saharan Africa, BMI is increasing at the same rate or faster in rural areas than in cities in low- and middle-income regions. These trends have in turn resulted in a closing-and in some countries reversal-of the gap in BMI between urban and rural areas in low- and middle-income countries, especially for women. In high-income and industrialized countries, we noted a persistently higher rural BMI, especially for women. There is an urgent need for an integrated approach to rural nutrition that enhances financial and physical access to healthy foods, to avoid replacing the rural undernutrition disadvantage in poor countries with a more general malnutrition disadvantage that entails excessive consumption of low-quality calories.Peer reviewe