ABSTRACT Improving the microbial quality and safety of cooked food in the school canteen is an effective means of reducing the burden of diarrhoeal diseases among school children. Studies across Africa have highlighted that foods sold on streets pose a great health hazard and contribute significantly to morbidity and even mortality among children. The main objective of this study was to determine the microbiological quality and safety of cooked food sold in canteens in some selected schools t...
ABSTRACT Assessment of viability of an ore deposit depends on the accurate estimation of the quantity and quality of the commodity, which is a function of the sample data quality. SAMEVA Limited, a fully owned Ghanaian company, wants to acquire Kojina Gold deposit as an investment opportunity in the gold industry of Ghana. The decision to invest in the mining industry comes with huge capital requirement and the associated risks are very high. The major objectives with regards to evaluating th...
ABSTRACT The sterile insect technique involves mass rearing of male insects for sterility purpose. This heavily relies on male fitness and genetic compatibility of laboratory-adapted male insects and the wild to ensure successful competition with their male counterpart in the wild. Uniform environment in the laboratory as compared to the wild conditions might lead to genetic drift which might lead to reduced sexual competitiveness, fitness, morphological changes or changes in the sexual behav...
ABSTRACT Cabbage is a well-known vegetable grown in Ghana due to its nutritional value and serves as a source of livelihood for small scale farmers. Its cultivation is constraint by insect pests such as Plutella xylostella (L) (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae), Hellula undalis (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) and Brevicoryne brassicae (Aphididae) which cause significant damage and yield loss. Farmers especially those in the Ketu South municipality of the Volta region apply synthetic insecticides 12-15 times...
ABSTRACT Malaria is a major public health problem in most developing countries. In Ghana, it is hyper-endemic with children under-five years, pregnant women and non-immune visitors being at greatest risk. The National Malaria Control Programme recognizes the use of Insecticide-Treated Nets (ITNs) as one of the multiple prevention tools in the control of the malaria vectors. But due to problems associated with ITNs which include rapid loss of bio-efficacy as a result of repeated washings and l...
ABSTRACT Agriculture is the backbone of most African countries. In Ghana it contributes immensely to the gross domestic product and it employs about 60% of the Country’s labour force, however the agricultural sector in the country is underdeveloped and mainly rain fed. Hence variability of rainfall affects crop production in the country. In spite of the variability of rainfall in the country and as a matter of fact, in the Keta District, farmers have resorted to some coping and adaptive str...
ABSTRACT Herbal medicines continue to be used in every country around the world in healthcare delivery, however, due to poverty and high doctor to patient ratio; about 75% of the population of the developing world solely rely on herbal medicine for their primary health care. It is thus imperative to develop measures to maximize the medicinal potentials of indigenous plants to reduce the number of lives lost through diseases. However, most herbal products sold in public places lack scientific ...
ABSTRACT The road transport system in Nigeria has played a major role in the 'socio-economic development of the country. The road mode still remains the dominant and most elaborate of all forms of transport in the country today. However, several issues are of· concern to both the operators and users of road transport system in Nigeria. These include condition of roads and its funding, road traffic accidents and vehicular air pollution. For example, 54 per cent of the road network in Nigeria...
ABSTRACT The impact of irrigation schemes on malaria risk has been a perennial subject of debate in that transmission in irrigated areas can appear higher, less than or similar in neighboring non-irrigated villages. To study its impact on malaria transmission in the coastal savanna area of Ghana, adult Anopheles mosquito populations were studied during the dry season of 2002 - 2003 in two villages, Okyereko which is situated within a rice-growing irrigation scheme and Bewadze located 9.5km aw...
ABSTRACT Small-scale mining has gained much recognition throughout the world. In Ghana it employs thousands of people and affects the livelihoods of many households located within the catchment areas of the mines. The study examined small-scale mining operations and their effects on the livelihoods of people the East Akim Municipal Assembly. In addition, the coping strategies adapted by affected individuals were also indentified. Four communities within the municipality were selected for the ...
ABSTRACT The Wetland environment is a unique with unique biota, including insects. Insects serve as indicators of environmental health. However, the recent spate of human encroachment on wetlands would affect this unique biota structure. This phenomenon could pose a threat to the wetland environment. The physical and chemical quality of these habitats would provide background information for comparison against established quality standard of the wetland environment. Information gathered could...
ABSTRACT Coconut oil and two types of palm oil (Palmin oil and Frytol oil) were evaluated for the control of the cowpea beetle, Callosobruchus maculatus (F.) on stored cowpea. The oils were applied at the rate of 4, 6 and 10 ml per kg cowpea. Oil treatment reduced oviposition and progeny emergence but did not affect the longevity of the adult insects. The highest dosage of 10 ml per kg seed protected the seeds for five months. Palmin oil appeared superior to coconut and frytol oil. The oils h...
ABSTRACT Ghana, for the last two decades, has been experiencing tremendous surge in urbanization. It is an over simplification to assert that even though in terms of proportions the country is still predominantly rural, its very large total population make the urban proportion sizeable. This apparent large urban population living in urban centres of various sizes have put a tremendous stress on the physical and social infrastructural facilities o f these centres. The stress is even precarious...
ABSTRACT Laboratory and field studies were conducted to investigate the toxicity, antifeedant activity, moulting inhibition property and persistence of two neem seed extracts against the cocoa mirids Distantiella theobroma (Dist.) and Sahlbergella singularis Hagl. The study also investigated the effects of neem extracts on nontarget arthropods. Propoxur (Unden 200 EC) was used for baseline comparison. In the laboratory bioassays, the neem was applied at the concentrations of 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%...
ABSTRACT With the urbanisation of the world's population proceeding apace and the increasing demand for metals putting permanent pressure on natural resources, metals have become a priority area for decoupling economic growth from resource use and environmental degradation. This is imperative if cities are to remain relevant in ensuring appropriate levels of supply and reduce the negative environmental footprints in the quest for global green economy. In that perspective, urban mining has bee...