INSTITUTIONAL RESEARCH PROJECTS
ISSER's research outputs are generally expected to be driven by the observed development problems and needs of Ghana and Africa. Research undertaken by ISSER is usually in response to the direct demands of government and other stakeholders for information and strategies for improving the well-being of people. At the same time, research by ISSER seeks to maintain a focus on the academic purpose of the Institute by adding to existing knowledge about society and development.

A good number of projects undertaken in 2005/06 year were carried over from the previous year. A number of new projects or initiatives were also started. This report looks at on-going research projects, the staffing situation and on-going programmes at the Institute.

The main research projects at the Institute presently are:

1.     Land Tenure and Land Policy Reform Project
This is a three-year multi-disciplinary research project into land tenure and land policy reform. The purpose is to provide greater clarity and fill gaps in knowledge about the nature and problems of land tenure and administration in Ghana. The research is intended to produce policy options in the search for directions, processes, components and likely impacts of reforms under the Land Administration Project. Research outputs are contributing to discussions about the place of land tenure in poverty reduction through the Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS-II). Researchers from several departments of the University are involved in the project. Aside from six expert papers commissioned, ISSER awarded 14 research grants valued at $10,000 each to a number of researchers in 2006.

The project is managed by Prof. Ernest Aryeetey, Dr. Dzodzi Tsikata and Dr. George Botchie.

 
2.     Migration, Globalisation and Poverty
This is a multidimensional study into various characteristics of recent migratory trends following globalisation. The project entered into its second phase (of 2 years) at the beginning of April 2006. The entire programme has nine different components and ISSER researchers are working on four (4) of them. Three main activities, being undertaken in this phase, are as follows:
    i.     Social Protection of Migrants in the Pineapple Sector.
     ii.     The Reintegration of Returned Child Migrants in the north of Ghana.
    iii.     A country paper on migration in Ghana.
    iv.     Emigration of Skilled Personnel
Fieldwork for the first project was completed in July 2006 and data processing is still on-going. Instruments for the second study are almost ready and fieldwork is planned from early 2007. Work on the country paper is on-going and mainly involves desk-top research ftinded by DFID. Prof. John K. Anarfi is the Principal Researcher for this project.

3.    PRIPODE/CICRED Project: Population Development and Environment in Metropolitan Accra
The "International Programme for Research on the Interactions between Population Development and Environment (PRIPODE) was designed to test the hypothesis that health levels in urban places are significantly influenced by the iocal neighbourhood environment including the natural environment, the social environment and location of a neighbourhood within the broader urban environment. This is also tied to the kind of institutional arrangements that regulate resource allocation from the centre to the local level. Nima/Mamobiin the Accra Metropolitan Area was selected for this study.
The project, which is managed by ISSER, involves researchers from ISSER and the Department of Geography and Resource Development, University of Ghana. It also involves yvork with health officials from Accra Metropolitan Assembly. It has been U11dertaken in collaboration with researchers from San Diego State University and Harvard School of Public Health. A draft report on this project was completed in August 2006. The project coordinator is Prof. J. K. Anarfi.

4.     FAHOPS Project: - Addressing the Health of Children in Urban Poor Areas
The project's main objective is to examine the effectiveness of measures geared towards improving the health of under-5 children in poor urban areas. It uses the three-pillar approach, a consistent and complementary system of home-based care, improved personal hygiene and environment and health service delivery. It aims at replicating what has already been done successfully in Nairobi, Kenya. It entered into its transition stage this year. The first phase was devoted to an exploratory study which was expected to open the way for a bigger quantitative survey. Towards this end, a dissemination workshop was held in May 2006.
 
The project is funded by the EU through the African Population and Health Research Centre in Nairabi, Kenya.

 5.     Ford Foundation - funded Projects
The current Ford Foundation - funded projects are in two parts:
    i.     Urban Youth Sexual Health Project
The project has entered its third phase with Ford Foundation funding. This support is for two years. The first year ended in August 2006. The project involves the running of outreach activities to young people in disadvantaged areas of Accra, out-of-school youth in apprenticeship and people living on the fringes of the city. It also offers training for young people in the project's centre at New Achimota in dress-making, hair¬dressing, catering and batik and tie and dye. Currently, there are about twenty (20) young people receiving training in the Centre.
    ii.     Research on Sexuality in West Africa
This is mainly a qualitative research to be done in Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal. An exclusive literature review has been done for the study and an interview guide has been put together. These documents have been presented at a meeting of a local advisory group put up to advise the project. The instrument is being revised in readiness for fieldwork early next year.
These projects are coordinated by Prof. John K. Anarfi

6.     Micro-Simulation Models for Africa
In 2002, UNU-WIDER began a project to develop capacity among four selected African countries namely, Botswana, Cameroon, Nigeria and Uganda to construct micro-simulation models of tax and expenditures in order to give policy makers a clear view of the consequences of their different choices. The success of the project in developing local capacity to construct economic models generated requests from other African countries for similar support.

One objective of this project is to build similar capacity in six additional African countries namely; Ghana, Zambia, Tanzania, Egypt, Namibia and
 
Mozambique. ISSER has been appointed to manage the project while participating in the research. Participants are made up of two (2) researchers from each of the six (6) countries. ISSER is being represented by Dr. Robert Osei and Mr. Emmanuel Joseph Mensah. The first training workshop was hosted by ISSER from the 7th - 9th November, 2006. The second has been scheduled for the third week of January 2007 in Egypt. Mrs Gladys Okyere-Boateng is the Project Manager.

 7.     Study on Returns to Public Expenditures in Ghana
The project is financed by the International Food Policy Research Institute(IFPRI) based in Washington and managed by IFPRI's Country Office in Ghana. The study seeks to achieve three objectives:
i.    to analyse public expenditure data and relate sectoral expenditures at the national level to spending outcomes and key development outcomes.
ii.    to develop a more detailed database to permit deeper analysis of the impacts of various forms of government spending on growth and poverty reduction and
iii.     to analyse incomes and expenditures of district assemblies, examine their sources of revenue and relate them to development outcomes of key sectors at the district level. Researchers working on the project are: Dr. Robert Osei, Dr. Isaac Osei-Akoto, Mr. George Adiah and Mr. William Quarmine. The project is managed by Prof. Ernest Aryeetey.

8.    Integrating Knowledge from Computational Modelling with Multi-Stakeholder Governance: Towards More Secure Livelihoods through Improved Tools for Integrated River Basin Management

The objective of the project is to research into the use of integrated simulation models as decision-tools in multi-stakeholder negotiation processes at the sub-basin level. The project sites are the Volta-Basin (<;;hana) and the 'virtual' Andes basin (Melado basin, Chile). The project will focus on (1) the analysis and strengthening of multi¬stakeholder governance structures in the two project sites (Sub-Basin Management Board in Ghana, Water User Associations in Chile), (2) the identification of problems, policy options to address the problems, and criteria for evaluation policy options by the stakeholders, (3) the extension of simulation models to incorporate the impact of climate change on land and water use decisions of risk-averse producers, (4) the evaluation of alternative policy options, as identified by stakeholders, (5) the development of decision-support tools that present and visualize the outputs of the simulation models in>a form that is useful for the stakeholders and (6) the actual use of the decision-support tools in negotiation and planning processes in the multi¬stakeholder governance structures.

Other collaborating institutions are International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), USA (Lead), Center for Development Research (ZEF), University of Bonn, Germany, Water Research Institute (WRI), CSIR, Ghana, Universidad de Taka, Chile, Institute of Rural Development (IRE), University of Gottingen, Germany, Center for Environmental Research Leipzig-Halle (UFZ) Germany. The ISSER component is coordinated by Dr. Felix Asante.

9.    Empowering Farming Communities in Northern Ghana with Strategic Innovations and Productive Resources in Dryland Farming
The project seeks to encourage the efficient capture and use of rainfall in non-irrigated farming so as to manage agricultural drought within the Volta basins of Northern Ghana. This will enable the attainment of household food security and sustainable income while conserving and regenerating the na hlral resource base by empowering rural farming communities to exploit the productive potential of the rainfed drylands in Northern Ghana. Specific objectives of the project are: (1) Increased farm level yields of staple crops (sorghum, millet, cowpea and cassava) in the rainfed, small¬scale farming systems in Northern Ghana while maintaining or improving upon the fertility of the farmlands and (2) Provide opportunities for women in rural communities to engage in off-farm income generation during the dry season.

Collaborating Institutions: are Savanna Agricultural Research Institute, CSIR, Ghana (Lead) Water Research Institute (WRI), CSIR, Ghana, International Crop Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, India, International Water Management Institute, Ghana Office, Accra. Dr. Felix Asante is the coordinator of the project.

10     Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Program: An Evaluation of the African Youth Alliance (AYA) Project in Ghana.

The objective of the exercise was to increase the precision level of information collection involving the knowledge base of respondents, their attitudes and perceptions about sex, the structure and organization of AYA education campaigns and the effectiveness of current AYA programs in reducing HIVj AIDS and other STI among the youth in Ghana.
 
The project was subcontracted by John Snow Inc. to ISSER. It started in March 2006 and ended in May 2006. ,It was coordinated by Prof. Clement Ahiadeke.

11.    Female Sex Workers Behavioural Surveillance Survey involving Seaters and Roamers in Accra and Kumasi, Ghana.
The main aim of the survey is to update and expand the behavioural and biomarker database on HIV ISTI risk among female sex workers in Ghana. It collected behavioural and biological data from seater and roamer FSWs in Accra and Kumasi in order to better define risk in this high-risk group and collect indicators to assist in the monitoring and evaluation of prevention activities. Collaborating institutions include: West Africa Project to Combat AIDS and STI's (WAPCAS); West Africa Project to CombatAIDS and STI's (WAPCAS), Strengthening HIV I AIDS Response Partnerships (SHARP) and Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR). This project started in May 2005 and ended with a final report in July 2006. It was coordinated by Prof. Clement Ahiadeke.

12.     Economy of Ghana Network
This project is very much the advocacy arm of ISSER activities. The Economy of Ghana Network (EGN) is a civil society organisation embracing all persons with adequate training and interest in issues relevant to the proper management of the country's social and economic development. The network, which is basically e-based, is meant to provide a platform for disseminating research findings and discussing their policy relevance. It seeks to make easily accessible to a wider audience the findings of research being carried out on the social and economic development in Ghana from different part of the globe. The network also seeks to engage all interested persons in policy debates and provides additional material to public agencies to assist national policy making. It is managed by ISSER with support from the African Capacity Building Fund (ACBF). Over 450 individuals have registered with the network. The EGN is coordinated by Prof Ernest Aryeetey.