Although under-five mortality rate seems to be declining in Ghana, the northern part of the count... more Although under-five mortality rate seems to be declining in Ghana, the northern part of the country has higher levels of under-five mortality vis-à-vis the national rates. This research examines the correlates of the high under-five mortality among children in the northern part of Ghana, with emphasis on the usage of insecticide-treated bed net (ITN), as recommended by the World Health Organization. A total of 3,839 under-five children sourced from the Ghana Demographic and Health Survey--was used for this study. Univariate descriptive statistics was employed to describe the variables used for the empirical estimation. The maximum likelihood estimation technique was used to estimate a logit model in other to determine the effect of insecticide treated bed net usage on under-five mortality. Insecticide-treated bed net usage among children enhances their survival rates. Thus, under-five mortality among children who sleep under treated bed nets is about 18.8% lower than among children who do not sleep under treated bed nets. While health facility delivery was found to reduce to reduce under-five mortality, child bearing among older women is detrimental to the survival of the child. The study, therefore, recommends that policies targeting reduction in under-five mortality in northern Ghana should consider not mere availability of ITNs in the household, but advocate the usage of these treated nets. The study recommends to the Ministry of Health to extend their services to unreached rural communities to encourage health facility delivery to reduce under-five mortality.
In the past, Small and Medium scale enterprises (SMEs), particularly in developing countries, lac... more In the past, Small and Medium scale enterprises (SMEs), particularly in developing countries, lacked access to financial products and services. The SME market was perceived by banks as risky, costly, and difficult to serve. However, there exists an array of financial products -microcredit, savings, and loans, insurance, mutual funds -in both the formal and informal sectors in Ghana today for SMEs. Opportunities to utilize these financial services are more plentiful than about a decade ago. This paper uses a direct measure of financial knowledge to empirically investigate the linkage between financial literacy and utilization of financial services by SMEs. However, since people"s level of knowledge can improve through utilization of financial service, we establish a bi-causality problem. In the analysis, two equations were estimated for financial literacy level, and utilization of financial service which includes financial literacy as an endogenous variable. The equation determining the level of financial literacy was estimated using the OLS while the equation for the utilization of financial service was estimated using logistic regression. The IV method was used to correct for the problem of endogeneity. Overall, the results show that there was modest level of financial literacy among small and medium entrepreneurs in Ghana. Moreover, it was discovered that the more financially literate entrepreneurs were more likely to utilize financial service than the less literate ones. The most commonly utilized financial service was operating a bank account. Finally, the instrument for financial literacy, recipient of financial education, also had positive relationship with utilization of financial service.
Despite the massive commitment by policy makers and stakeholders to increase the supply of water ... more Despite the massive commitment by policy makers and stakeholders to increase the supply of water to households in Ghana, many households have a deficiency in their self-reported daily quantity of water required for drinking and for general use. This paper focuses on the effect of water source and travelling time on households’ deficiency in demand for water using the Sixth Round of the Ghana Living Standards survey. A Tobit regression analysis of data on 2,843 households reveals that a one minute increase in travelling time increases household deficiency in water demand by about 49 percent. Also, compared to pipe in welling/yard/plot, all other sources of water to the households come with greater levels of water deficiency, with unprotected well/spring/river-stream/dam-lake-pond generating the greatest (10.5 litres) levels of deficiency. Other significant predictors of household deficiency in water demand are per capita disposable income, number of rooms in the household, sex of the household head and regular payment of water bills. Government policies aimed at addressing household deficiency in water demand should focus on making more resources available to the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) and the Community Water and Sanitation Agency so as to achieve more coverage of water accessible to both urban and rural households.
This paper assesses the determinants of school enrolment in Ghana during the period from1970-2012... more This paper assesses the determinants of school enrolment in Ghana during the period from1970-2012 using data from World Bank Development Indicators.The study employed the Bayesian Moving Average model (BMA) in order to address the issue of model uncertainty. By making use of 28 regressors as possible determinants of school enrolment, the results of the empirical analysis show that percentage of female teachers in the community, number of schools in the community, household expenditure, labour force with primary education, progression rate to secondary level. Among others are the factors that influence enrolment level. The results are robust with the change of coefficient priors in the estimated model. Government should introduce the quota system where more females will be trained as teachers and also introduce more programmes to reduce fertility rate.
Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to present readers with information on the state of provisi... more Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to present readers with information on the state of provision of agricultural insurance as a means of protecting financial investment in agricultural productivity in Ghana. Design/methodology/approach -The paper reviews interventions in the provision of agricultural insurance in Ghana and then examines what is currently being done in this area. The paper looks at issues arising from empirical evidence on agricultural insurance provision and links them to scholarly articles on these issues. Findings -This paper shows that there has been considerable effort from the German Development Cooperation, the Ghana National Insurance Commission and government ministries and agencies, the Insurance sector in Ghana and stakeholder institutions leading to the creation of an agricultural insurance provider in Ghana. It is, however, evident from the results that the system is facing major challenges resulting primarily from the inability of the state to provide the needed policy and regulatory support that will assist the insurance sector in the development and delivery of the agricultural insurance products. Originality/value -Even though there has been some research that has touched on agricultural insurance in Ghana, none of them has actually examined the current systems of providing the insurance since its inception. The paper therefore fills the gap of providing information on the current ongoing interventions for the provision of agricultural insurance for individuals and organizations that invest in the agricultural sector in Ghana.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN COMMERCE, IT & MANAGEMENT
This paper investigates determinants of customer loyalty and subscriber churn among Ghanaian tert... more This paper investigates determinants of customer loyalty and subscriber churn among Ghanaian tertiary students. The study addresses two research questions: What factors are responsible for customer loyalty in mobile telephony? What factors influence mobile users to change mobile telephone provider? The study employed binary logit model and used a sample survey data. The results indicate that students' mobile switching behaviour is affected by factors relating to customer service, service quality and mobile service price. Also, customer loyalty of students is dependent on call quality and brand image. The results have implications that mobile service providers should consider their service quality, prices, customer service and brand image to retain subscribers.
Promoting a dynamic operating environment for Small Medium scale enterprises (SMEs) is seen as a ... more Promoting a dynamic operating environment for Small Medium scale enterprises (SMEs) is seen as a priority amongst economic development goals, in both developed and emerging economies.
Online Journal of Social Sciences Research ISSN 2277-0844;
Maintaining scholarly contacts with countries inside and outside the shore of an institution's te... more Maintaining scholarly contacts with countries inside and outside the shore of an institution's territory for knowledge acquisition has remained paramount in academic circles. The dynamics of the exchange programmes require properly kept records. This study explored the dynamics of exchange programme records by focusing on the aspects of the exchange programmes recorded, the mode of recording, the level students' participation, the benefits accrued from the records and the challenges associated with recording exchange programme information. With the deployment of ICT facilities, the main issue recorded included students' profile and their experiences while they were on the exchange programmes. Further, the records on students' experience have ensured the institutionalization of a pre-traveling orientation programme the content of which is reviewed on the basis of new sets of information obtained. The records also ensured increase in the number of students who go for the exchange programme. The creation of a data base of past students as means of tracking their progress as professionals and the relevance of the exchange programmes on their performance was discovered. The difficulty, however, was the slow pace at which the data base was developed, low level of students' participation in producing the content of the records and the inability of the records to show how exchange programmes change the attitudes of the students. The study recommended a speedy completion of the data base, increased students' participation and expansion of the nature of records kept.
Although under-five mortality rate seems to be declining in Ghana, the northern part of the count... more Although under-five mortality rate seems to be declining in Ghana, the northern part of the country has higher levels of under-five mortality vis-à-vis the national rates. This research examines the correlates of the high under-five mortality among children in the northern part of Ghana, with emphasis on the usage of insecticide-treated bed net (ITN), as recommended by the World Health Organization. A total of 3,839 under-five children sourced from the Ghana Demographic and Health Survey--was used for this study. Univariate descriptive statistics was employed to describe the variables used for the empirical estimation. The maximum likelihood estimation technique was used to estimate a logit model in other to determine the effect of insecticide treated bed net usage on under-five mortality. Insecticide-treated bed net usage among children enhances their survival rates. Thus, under-five mortality among children who sleep under treated bed nets is about 18.8% lower than among children who do not sleep under treated bed nets. While health facility delivery was found to reduce to reduce under-five mortality, child bearing among older women is detrimental to the survival of the child. The study, therefore, recommends that policies targeting reduction in under-five mortality in northern Ghana should consider not mere availability of ITNs in the household, but advocate the usage of these treated nets. The study recommends to the Ministry of Health to extend their services to unreached rural communities to encourage health facility delivery to reduce under-five mortality.
In the past, Small and Medium scale enterprises (SMEs), particularly in developing countries, lac... more In the past, Small and Medium scale enterprises (SMEs), particularly in developing countries, lacked access to financial products and services. The SME market was perceived by banks as risky, costly, and difficult to serve. However, there exists an array of financial products -microcredit, savings, and loans, insurance, mutual funds -in both the formal and informal sectors in Ghana today for SMEs. Opportunities to utilize these financial services are more plentiful than about a decade ago. This paper uses a direct measure of financial knowledge to empirically investigate the linkage between financial literacy and utilization of financial services by SMEs. However, since people"s level of knowledge can improve through utilization of financial service, we establish a bi-causality problem. In the analysis, two equations were estimated for financial literacy level, and utilization of financial service which includes financial literacy as an endogenous variable. The equation determining the level of financial literacy was estimated using the OLS while the equation for the utilization of financial service was estimated using logistic regression. The IV method was used to correct for the problem of endogeneity. Overall, the results show that there was modest level of financial literacy among small and medium entrepreneurs in Ghana. Moreover, it was discovered that the more financially literate entrepreneurs were more likely to utilize financial service than the less literate ones. The most commonly utilized financial service was operating a bank account. Finally, the instrument for financial literacy, recipient of financial education, also had positive relationship with utilization of financial service.
Despite the massive commitment by policy makers and stakeholders to increase the supply of water ... more Despite the massive commitment by policy makers and stakeholders to increase the supply of water to households in Ghana, many households have a deficiency in their self-reported daily quantity of water required for drinking and for general use. This paper focuses on the effect of water source and travelling time on households’ deficiency in demand for water using the Sixth Round of the Ghana Living Standards survey. A Tobit regression analysis of data on 2,843 households reveals that a one minute increase in travelling time increases household deficiency in water demand by about 49 percent. Also, compared to pipe in welling/yard/plot, all other sources of water to the households come with greater levels of water deficiency, with unprotected well/spring/river-stream/dam-lake-pond generating the greatest (10.5 litres) levels of deficiency. Other significant predictors of household deficiency in water demand are per capita disposable income, number of rooms in the household, sex of the household head and regular payment of water bills. Government policies aimed at addressing household deficiency in water demand should focus on making more resources available to the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) and the Community Water and Sanitation Agency so as to achieve more coverage of water accessible to both urban and rural households.
This paper assesses the determinants of school enrolment in Ghana during the period from1970-2012... more This paper assesses the determinants of school enrolment in Ghana during the period from1970-2012 using data from World Bank Development Indicators.The study employed the Bayesian Moving Average model (BMA) in order to address the issue of model uncertainty. By making use of 28 regressors as possible determinants of school enrolment, the results of the empirical analysis show that percentage of female teachers in the community, number of schools in the community, household expenditure, labour force with primary education, progression rate to secondary level. Among others are the factors that influence enrolment level. The results are robust with the change of coefficient priors in the estimated model. Government should introduce the quota system where more females will be trained as teachers and also introduce more programmes to reduce fertility rate.
Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to present readers with information on the state of provisi... more Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to present readers with information on the state of provision of agricultural insurance as a means of protecting financial investment in agricultural productivity in Ghana. Design/methodology/approach -The paper reviews interventions in the provision of agricultural insurance in Ghana and then examines what is currently being done in this area. The paper looks at issues arising from empirical evidence on agricultural insurance provision and links them to scholarly articles on these issues. Findings -This paper shows that there has been considerable effort from the German Development Cooperation, the Ghana National Insurance Commission and government ministries and agencies, the Insurance sector in Ghana and stakeholder institutions leading to the creation of an agricultural insurance provider in Ghana. It is, however, evident from the results that the system is facing major challenges resulting primarily from the inability of the state to provide the needed policy and regulatory support that will assist the insurance sector in the development and delivery of the agricultural insurance products. Originality/value -Even though there has been some research that has touched on agricultural insurance in Ghana, none of them has actually examined the current systems of providing the insurance since its inception. The paper therefore fills the gap of providing information on the current ongoing interventions for the provision of agricultural insurance for individuals and organizations that invest in the agricultural sector in Ghana.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN COMMERCE, IT & MANAGEMENT
This paper investigates determinants of customer loyalty and subscriber churn among Ghanaian tert... more This paper investigates determinants of customer loyalty and subscriber churn among Ghanaian tertiary students. The study addresses two research questions: What factors are responsible for customer loyalty in mobile telephony? What factors influence mobile users to change mobile telephone provider? The study employed binary logit model and used a sample survey data. The results indicate that students' mobile switching behaviour is affected by factors relating to customer service, service quality and mobile service price. Also, customer loyalty of students is dependent on call quality and brand image. The results have implications that mobile service providers should consider their service quality, prices, customer service and brand image to retain subscribers.
Promoting a dynamic operating environment for Small Medium scale enterprises (SMEs) is seen as a ... more Promoting a dynamic operating environment for Small Medium scale enterprises (SMEs) is seen as a priority amongst economic development goals, in both developed and emerging economies.
Online Journal of Social Sciences Research ISSN 2277-0844;
Maintaining scholarly contacts with countries inside and outside the shore of an institution's te... more Maintaining scholarly contacts with countries inside and outside the shore of an institution's territory for knowledge acquisition has remained paramount in academic circles. The dynamics of the exchange programmes require properly kept records. This study explored the dynamics of exchange programme records by focusing on the aspects of the exchange programmes recorded, the mode of recording, the level students' participation, the benefits accrued from the records and the challenges associated with recording exchange programme information. With the deployment of ICT facilities, the main issue recorded included students' profile and their experiences while they were on the exchange programmes. Further, the records on students' experience have ensured the institutionalization of a pre-traveling orientation programme the content of which is reviewed on the basis of new sets of information obtained. The records also ensured increase in the number of students who go for the exchange programme. The creation of a data base of past students as means of tracking their progress as professionals and the relevance of the exchange programmes on their performance was discovered. The difficulty, however, was the slow pace at which the data base was developed, low level of students' participation in producing the content of the records and the inability of the records to show how exchange programmes change the attitudes of the students. The study recommended a speedy completion of the data base, increased students' participation and expansion of the nature of records kept.
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Papers by Jacob Nunoo