Community-based participatory irrigation management at local government level in Ghana

Ghana has attempted to decentralise the management of irrigation schemes to communities at local government level. This study examines the existing local participatory management structures and the principles of the Participatory Irrigation Management (PIM) strategy designed to promote sustainable management of irrigation schemes in Ghana. Two community-based irrigation projects, Bontanga and Golinga in the Northern Region of Ghana were selected for the research. The study demonstrated that farmers’ participation was minimal and limited to the discussion of irrigation service charges at the expense of other issues related to the sustainability of the projects/schemes. The study also established that there was less participation of women, and more than half of all the crop farmers on the two irrigation projects were reluctant to assume additional responsibilities without remuneration. The study therefore concluded that the sustainability of the PIM strategy depends on the adoption of an integrated management approach involving all stakeholders including local government, with appropriate incentives

Mapping poverty hot spots in Peninsular Malaysia using spatial autocorrelation analysis

In September 2000 The Millennium Summit adopted the UN Millennium Declaration, committing nations to a new global partnership to reduce extreme poverty with a deadline of 2015. Eight Millennium Development Goals were formulated of which the eradication of poverty given top priority. However, Malaysia’s participation with the UN in dealing with poverty, precede this when it committed itself with the United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (1997–2006) programme, which was then reinforced when the Millennium Declaration was made in 2000. Nationally, poverty eradication as well as bridging the inequality gap among the major ethnic groups and states has been the main development goal in Malaysia’s development agenda since independence. In this regards, the principle of “growth with equity” has been the central theme in all Malaysia’s development policies and efforts since independence. Although Malaysia has made significant achievements in reducing the incidence of aggregate poverty across the country from 8.9% in 1995 down to 1.7% in 2012, there still exist pockets of poverty in the rural areas, in certain states/regions and among ethnic groups, as well as in some urban areas. This shows that formulating planning and policy implementation to eradicate poverty now needs to be more spatially focused for the implementation to be more effective. Recognising the incidence of poverty through standard statistical data tables alone is no longer adequate in formulating planning and policy implementation. Through spatial autocorrelation analysis the pattern of distribution of poverty in space over a period of time can easily be visualised and hotspots of incidence of poverty identified. This paper attempts to show how this analysis can assist in focusing efforts to eradicate poverty in Malaysia

An explorative study on the adoption and dis-adoption of improved rice varieties among farmers in the Northern region of Ghana

Rice consumption in Ghana has increased steadily over the years. To enhance rice productivity to meet demand, several high-performing rice varieties have been disseminated via numerous interventions to smallholders in Northern Ghana. Nevertheless, productivity is still low at farm gate compared to research stations, due to smallholder poor adoption of the varieties. Using primary data collected from 404 farmers, the study examines the adoption levels of the main rice varieties among farmers and investigates the reasons for their adoption and dis-adoption. The empirical results revealed that rice varieties namely, Agra, Sakai, Jasmine 85, and Afife were the most adopted in the study area. Also, the study finds that GR-18, Nerica, Digang, Tox, Mandee, and Faro-15 were the most dis-adopted rice varieties. The main reasons for which farmers adopted the improved rice varieties were availability of a ready market for the produce, crop resistance to pests and diseases, consumer higher demand for rice, advice by extension staff to cultivate, and encouragement from researchers to adopt. The reasons for the dis-adoption of improved rice varieties in the study area were high input requirements, lack of ready market for the varieties, and unfavorable climatic conditions. The findings of the study give direction as to the angle from which the adoption of improved rice varieties can be stepped up while dis-adoption is reduced. Research scientists should research into rice varieties that are more suitable for the soil and climatic conditions of the study area and continue to sensitize and motivate the farmers to adopt them, while government should step up its support for the research scientists as well as the extension officers to deliver on their mandate

Sustainable P-enriched biochar-compost production: harnessing the prospects of maize stover and groundnut husk in Ghana’s Guinea Savanna

Farmers in resource-poor areas of the Guinea Savanna zone of Ghana often face declining soil fertility due to the continuous removal of nutrient-rich harvested produce from their fields. This study focuses on the Lawra Municipality in the Guinea Savanna zone of Ghana, where low soil fertility, specifically, limits phosphorus (P) bioavailability and hinders crop production. The objective of this research is to formulate P-enhanced biochar-compost from maize stover (MS) and groundnut husk, which abound in the area, to close the nutrient loop. MS was co-composted with groundnut husk biochar at varying rates of 0, 10, 20, 30, and 40% by volume. To facilitate decomposition using the windrow system, the composting heaps were inoculated with decomposing cow dung, and the moisture content was kept at 60% throughout the monitoring period. The addition of biochar shortened the lag phase of composting. However, rates above 20% resulted in reduced degradation of MS. Biochar incorporation enriched the available phosphorus content in the final compost from 286.7 mg kg−1 in the non-biochar-compost to 320, 370, 546, and 840.0 mg kg−1 in the 10, 20, 30, and 40% biochar-compost, respectively

Influence of socio-economic status on habitual physical activity and sedentary behavior in 8- to 11-year old children

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>While socio-economic status has been shown to be an important determinant of health and physical activity in adults, results for children and adolescents are less consistent. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to examine whether physical activity and sedentary behavior differs in children by socio-economic status (SES) independent of body mass index.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Data were from two cohorts including 271 children (117 males; 154 females) in study 1 and 131 children in study 2 (63 males; 68 females). The average age was 9.6 and 8.8 years respectively. Height and body mass were assessed according to standard procedures and body mass index (BMI, kg/m²) was calculated. Parent-reported household income was used to determine SES. Habitual, free-living physical activity (PA) was assessed by a pedometer (steps/day) in study 1 and accelerometer (time spent in moderate-to-vigorous PA) in study 2. Self-reported time spent watching TV and on the computer was used as measure of sedentary behavior. Differences in PA and sedentary behavior by SES were initially tested using ANOVA. Further analyses used ANCOVA controlling for BMI, as well as leg length in the pedometer cohort.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In study 1, mean daily steps differed significantly among SES groups with lower SES groups approximating 10,500 steps/day compared to about 12,000 steps/day in the higher SES groups. These differences remained significant (p < 0.05) when controlling for leg length. Lower SES children, however, had higher body mass and BMI compared to higher SES groups (p < 0.05) and PA no longer remained significant when further controlling for BMI. In study 2 results depended on the methodology used to determine time spent in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). Only one equation resulted in significant group differences (p = 0.015), and these differences remained after controlling for BMI. Significant differences between SES groups were shown for sedentary behavior in both cohorts (P < 0.05) with higher SES groups spending less time watching TV than low SES groups.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Children from a low SES show a trend of lower PA levels and spend more time in sedentary behavior than high SES children; however, differences in PA were influenced by BMI. The higher BMI in these children might be another factor contributing to increased health risks among low SES children compared to children from with a higher SES.</p

Farmers’ perceptions of climate change : identifying types

Ambitious targets to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agriculture have been set by both national governments and their respective livestock sectors. We hypothesize that farmer self-identity influences their assessment of climate change and their willingness to im- plement measures which address the issue. Perceptions of climate change were determined from 286 beef/sheep farmers and evaluated using principal component analysis (PCA). The analysis elicits two components which evaluate identity (productivism and environmental responsibility), and two components which evaluate behavioral capacity to adopt mitigation and adaptation measures (awareness and risk perception). Subsequent Cluster Analyses reveal four farmer types based on the PCA scores. ‘The Productivist’ and ‘The Countryside Steward’ portray low levels of awareness of climate change, but differ in their motivation to adopt pro-environmental behavior. Conversely, both ‘The Environmentalist’ and ‘The Dejected’ score higher in their awareness of the issue. In addition, ‘The Dejected’ holds a high sense of perceived risk; however, their awareness is not conflated with an explicit understanding of agricultural GHG sources. With the exception of ‘The Environmentalist’, there is an evident disconnect between perceptions of agricultural emission sources and their contribution towards GHG emissions amongst all types. If such linkages are not con- ceptualized, it is unlikely that behavioral capacities will be realized. Effective communication channels which encour- age action should target farmers based on the groupings depicted. Therefore, understanding farmer types through the constructs used in this study can facilitate effective and tai- lored policy development and implementation

The Provision of Educational Infrastructure and Academic Performance in Tertiary Institutions in Ghana: University of Developmental Studies (UDS), WA Campus as a Case Study

This paper investigates the relationship between educational infrastructure facilities and academic performance in tertiary institutions in Ghana with the University for Development Studies, Wa Campus as the case of study. The Wa Campus of the University for Development Studies is comprised of the Faculty of Integrated Development Studies, the Faculty of Planning and Land Management, and the Faculty of Business Studies.&nbsp;&nbsp;The current student population of the Wa Campus is about 10,500. The total number of students&rsquo; admitted for the 2010/2011 academic year was about 5,000. From the qualitative and quantitative data analyses it was concluded that poor infrastructure facilities was the major cause of poor academic performance of students on the Wa Campus of the University for Development Studies. &nbsp

The challenges and prospects of the school feeding programme in Northern Ghana

There is a general problem of enrolment to basic education in northern Ghana. Available statistics indicate that from 2000-05 only about 42 per cent of qualified applicants of school-going age in the Northern Region were enrolled in basic schools. This paper assesses the implementation of the programme in the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly. The findings showed that, whilst the programme has increased primary school enrolment, the major impediment to the implementation of the programme is cash flow constraints

Mapping poverty hot spots in Peninsular Malaysia using spatial autocorrelation analysis

In September 2000 The Millennium Summit adopted the UN Millennium Declaration, committing nations to a new global partnership to reduce extreme poverty with a deadline of 2015. Eight Millennium Development Goals were formulated of which the eradication of poverty given top priority. However, Malaysia's participation with the UN in dealing with poverty, precede this when it committed itself with the United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (1997-2006) programme, which was then reinforced when the Millennium Declaration was made in 2000. Nationally, poverty eradication as well as bridging the inequality gap among the major ethnic groups and states has been the main development goal in Malaysia's development agenda since independence. In this regards, the principle of "growth with equity" has been the central theme in all Malaysia's development policies and efforts since independence. Although Malaysia has made significant achievements in reducing the incidence of aggregate poverty across the country from 8.9% in 1995 down to 1.7% in 2012, there still exist pockets of poverty in the rural areas, in certain states/regions and among ethnic groups, as well as in some urban areas. This shows that formulating planning and policy implementation to eradicate poverty now needs to be more spatially focused for the implementation to be more effective. Recognising the incidence of poverty through standard statistical data tables alone is no longer adequate in formulating planning and policy implementation. Through spatial autocorrelation analysis the pattern of distribution of poverty in space over a period of time can easily be visualised and hotspots of incidence of poverty identified. This paper attempts to show how this analysis can assist in focusing efforts to eradicate poverty in Malaysia