Groundwater quality in some Voltaian and Birimian aquifers in northern Ghana—application of mulitvariate statistical methods and geographic information systems     

Sandow Mark Yidana  Bruce Banoeng-Yakubo  Abdul-Samed Aliou  Thomas M. Akabzaa 《水文科学杂志》2013,58(6):1168-1183

Abstract

Groundwater is a priceless resource in the economies of the rural populations in northern Ghana. A combination of multivariate statistical and spatial analytical techniques was applied to groundwater data from the Voltaian and Birimian aquifers in parts of northern Ghana. The objective was to classify the groundwater quality control parameters and determine whether the aquifers deliver groundwater of acceptable quality for domestic and commercial irrigation purposes. It was found that groundwater quality is dominated by the weathering of accessory minerals that are predominant in the Obosum and Oti beds of the Middle Voltaian in the north, and incongruent silicate mineral weathering ranks second among the major causes of variation. The two processes account for over 70% of the total variance in the hydrochemistry and interpolation maps generated for these two major factors are discussed. The mineral weathering and dissolution processes are less apparent within the Birimian aquifers. Four spatial groundwater types were distinguished by differences in EC and pH, which are high among the water types within the Obosum and Oti beds, and generally low within the Birimian aquifers. Mineral stability diagrams suggest that montmorillonite is the most stable clay mineral phase in the system, a significant finding in terms of cation exchange processes. This, in turn, has affected the irrigation quality of groundwater from the aquifers in the area. Our findings suggest that the Birimian aquifers are more suitable for irrigation, due to generally low salinities and sodicities, and those associated with the Obosum and Oti beds of the Middle Voltaian are less suitable.

Editor D. Koutsoyiannis; Associate editor Y. Guttman

Citation Yidana, S.M., Banoeng-Yakubo, B., Aliou, A.-S., and Akabzaa, T., 2012. Groundwater quality in some Voltaian and Birimian aquifers in northern Ghana—application of mulitvariate statistical methods and geographic information systems. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 57 (6), 1168–1183.  相似文献   

Imageries of the contested concepts “land grabbing” and “land transactions”: Implications for biofuels investments in Ghana     

《Geoforum》2014

In Ghana, the contested concepts of “land grabbing” and “land transaction” are strategically applied by proponents of critical and win–win discourses respectively to describe outcomes of land deals. Using case study methods and discourse analysis, this paper explores four cases of biofuels investments in Ghana and the implications of the choice of concepts used to represent them. Proponents of the critical discourse use the “land grabbing” concept to invoke imageries of “illegality”, “theft” and “food insecurity” when describing land deals. Consequently, some biofuels investments have been hampered in their potential to generate profit and local employment. The biofuel investors in this study, whose projects have been labeled “land grabbing”, therefore switched to food production to downplay public scepticism. Proponents of the win–win discourse portray biofuels investments as “pro-poor” projects and use the “land transaction” concept to pre-empt possible public criticisms in the media and elsewhere. Such representations of these biofuels investments are therefore mainly intended to pre-empt criticisms or attract public praise. Some projects with potentially promising outcomes have thus been terminated, while others with problematic outcomes have continued to be promoted. In contexts characterized by weak land regulations and ambivalence towards large-scale agriculture, the trajectory and outcomes of biofuels investments are often influenced by land deal representations drawn from global discourses and how they interact with pre-existing local discourses.  相似文献   

The Emergence of Gated Communities in a West African Context: Evidence From Greater Accra,Ghana     

《Urban geography》2013,34(8):661-683

Since the beginning of the 1990s, the global expansion of gated communities has become an increasingly important part of the residential geography of many cities. The gated community phenomenon has not been researched in West African cities, and the extent of these communities' formation and convergence or divergence with global trends is unknown. This article provides the first-ever analysis of their formation in Greater Accra, Ghana. The analysis suggests that the globalization of real estate markets and Diaspora living are important aspects in the residential geography of Accra. The concept of "transnational houses" is employed to explain aspects of the local property market that are being globalized and differentiated from local housing. Transnational houses add another layer of diversity to the contemporary urban geography of Greater Accra.  相似文献   

Factors for the presence of avian scavengers in Accra and Kumasi, Ghana     

Michael Campbell 《Area》2009,41(3):341-349

Avian scavengers are common and active in the social life of southern Ghana, yet few studies consider both the ecological factors for avian presence and the avian–human interactions from human gender and age perspectives, and compare avian behaviour in both human-dominated and natural landscapes. This paper examines interactions between people, hooded vultures and pied crows in Accra and Kumasi, Ghana using both ecological and social research methods. Land use was classified for species presence into meat and waste production, vegetable marketing, non-food production, residential and central business areas, green spaces and rural areas. One hundred and eighty-four people were interviewed, classified according to age and gender. Hooded vultures and pied crows were more common in urban than rural areas, and their presence was positively correlated with human numbers. Birds were most common in meat and waste production areas, but also foraged for street discards in non-food production and residential areas, and were most rare in rural areas. Bird consumption of waste was viewed positively, while eating of other foods, close proximity and unusual behaviours were viewed negatively. Both species, especially the larger vultures, were feared as spiritual agents, this measured by odd behaviours. Women and older people had stronger beliefs, due to cultural conditioning. These human perspectives and reactions influenced avian presence. This study contributes to urban avian ecology, socio-cultural studies and urban planning.  相似文献   

Culture,Markets, and Agricultural Production: A Comparative Study of the Investment Patterns of Migrant and Citizen Cocoa Farmers in the Western Region of Ghana     

Louis Awanyo 《The Professional geographer》1998,50(4):516-530

Current agrarian reforms in Ghana, sponsored by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, are based on the notion that pricing incentives from markets are the key to agricultural investments. The turnaround in the production of the principal agricultural export, cocoa, seems to vindicate this view. However, this perspective is silent on the question of why many farmers continued to produce cocoa in the period preceding the reforms when prices were at their lowest in the country's history. Based on research on the comparative investment patterns of migrant and citizen cocoa farmers in two districts in the Western region of Ghana, this article suggests a holistic approach to comprehending investments. It indicates that the economic behaviour of cocoa farmers is complexly linked to the politics of land tenure, and cultural expectations and obligations.  相似文献   

The divergence between acceptability of municipal services and urbanization in developing countries: insights from Accra and Sekondi-Takoradi,Ghana     

Martin Oteng-Ababio  Ian Smout  Ebenezer Forkuo Amankwaa  James Esson 《Geografisk tidskrift / udgivet af Bestyrelsen for Det Kongelige danske geografiske selskab》2017,117(2):142-154

Abstract

In most developing countries, the provision of municipal services and infrastructure invariably fails to match the pace and demands of urbanization. The outcome is often increased informality due to improper planning, official bureaucratic barriers and perhaps insufficient and shrinking public resources, which then makes leveraging private capital for public service provision imperative. Drawing on in-depth qualitative fieldwork in two Ghanaian cities, this paper aims to extend literature on the divergence between service provision and urbanization in developing countries. More specifically, it attempts to qualify recent macro-level data indicating that access to water, sanitation and electricity services in Accra and Sekondi-Takoradi is improving substantively. Contrary to dominant policy narratives circulating in Ghana, we illustrate how the acceptability of key municipal services within urban settings is often inadequate, and how acceptability is tied to spatial and temporal factors. We then identify and examine the reasons underpinning these variations. Through exploring residents’ perceptions of key services, and examining critically the possibility and feasibility of meeting urban service needs through leveraging private resources, this paper contributes to broader academic debates over urban service provision, while also feeding into contemporary policy discussions concerning how to achieve several of the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.  相似文献   

From smallholders to transnationals: The impact of changing consumer preferences in the EU on Ghana’s pineapple sector     

Niels Fold  Katherine V. Gough   《Geoforum》2008,39(5):1687-1697

This paper explores the impact that a new type of pineapple, and subsequent changing consumer preferences in the Global North, has had on the livelihoods of pineapple growers in Ghana. The paper starts by tracing how research and development in Costa Rica by the world’s largest producers of pineapple, Del Monte and Dole, have resulted in a new variety MD2. This new pineapple type has been marketed in the EU through campaigns carried out by plantation companies via supermarkets. Consumer preferences have subsequently switched to MD2 away from the varieties which previously dominated the market, including the Ghanaian grown Smooth Cayenne. Ghanaian smallholders have experienced a dramatic drop in the demand for Smooth Cayenne and are unable to switch to growing MD2. The Ghanaian pineapple sector is consequently being restructured with large-scale pineapple farms, principally run by transnational companies, growing large quantities of MD2 for export. Through a detailed empirical study of the changing livelihoods of pineapple growers in two settlements in Ghana, we show how smallholders have been affected in differing ways as transnational companies have increasingly entered the market. Recent attempts to incorporate smallholders as producers of niche pineapple products are discussed. The paper illustrates the mutual benefits of linking global value chain analysis with livelihood analysis.  相似文献   

Changing rainfall inputs in the Volta basin: implications for water sharing in Ghana     

Kwadwo Owusu  Peter Waylen  Youliang Qiu 《GeoJournal》2008,71(4):201-210

We present evidence from the analysis of gridded annual rainfall data that, increased variability and declining rainfall totals are the main cause of declining lake levels in the Volta basin above the Akosombo Dam. West Africa has undergone a period of diminished rainfall, punctuated by a series of severe droughts and marked by a shift in rainfall regime. As a result, lake levels behind the hydro-electric impoundment have fluctuated so widely at times that, power has had to be rationed. The trends in the spatial and temporal variability of annual rainfall in the riparian nations explain the low impoundment levels frequent in recent decades. The drying of Burkina Faso and Mali is particularly marked and synchronous to an apparent shift in the rainfall regime in Ghana towards a longer dry season and vanishing short dry spell, the effects which tend to negate each other. The various regional and temporal associations between El Niño-Southern Oscillation phenomenon (ENSO) are investigated as a possible cause of variation across the basin. The strengths of these associations and low frequency shifts suggest an unfortunate correspondence between national and climatological boundaries which may serve to heighten regional political tensions resulting from ENSO effects. Lack of re-investment in the Akosombo Dam as a result of management policies, political and pre-construction contractual agreements have all conspired in recent decades to make these hydro-climatological changes more devastating.  相似文献   

Patterns of population change in Ghana (1984–2000): urbanization and frontier development     

Lasse Moller-Jensen  Michael H. Knudsen 《GeoJournal》2008,73(4):307-320

The study addresses population dynamics in Ghana on the urban and regional levels between 1984 and 2000. At the urban level, the development trends are analyzed for urban localities (population above 5,000) on the basis of geo-coded census data. Potential driving forces for rapid population growth related to size, location, accessibility and facility counts are examined using bivariate and multivariate analysis. An index of weighted accessibility relative to other urban localities provides significant explanation at the national level, as does initial locality size. At the regional level, population development is analyzed to provide insight into the rural–urban relations. The level of urbanization is steadily increasing but varies considerably between regions. Areas of high population growth are found in some rural areas that have a remote location relative to the large urban centers. This seems to indicate the existence of ‘frontier’ regions, i.e. areas that experience a high degree of in-migration by people aiming to undertake specific farming activities. A high proportion of the population growth in these areas appears to take place in relatively small towns. The paper concludes with a more in-depth discussion of the development characteristics of Ghana’s Western Region. This region has experienced one of the highest regional population growth rates, mainly due to its status as a ‘frontier’ for cocoa production.

Lasse Moller-JensenEmail:

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Cultural and Geographical Influences on Underweight Prevalence among Preschoolers in Ghana          下载免费PDF全文

Ebenezer G. A. Nikoi 《Geographical review》2018,108(3):367-386

Underweight prevalence among preschool children in Africa has been studied, but the effects of culture and geography remain unclear. This study used the 2008 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey data for 2244 children aged 0‐59 months and generalized linear mixed models to analyze these data. The results showed that culture and geography remained significantly associated with preschool underweight prevalence after controlling for demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of children, mothers, and households. Additionally, the gender of a child, size at birth, fever status, mother's BMI, insurance coverage and number of children <5 years in the household were significantly associated with underweight prevalence in Ghana. The study concluded that in addition to specific characteristics of children, mothers, and households, culturally motivated childhood dietary restrictions among the Ga/Dangme and Ewe could be reduced through appropriately targeted nutritional messages. Additionally, decreasing North‐South disparities in socioeconomic development, and improving nutritional outcomes among disadvantaged households in southern Ghana should be the focus of policies and strategies directed at reducing preschool underweight prevalence in Ghana.  相似文献