The majority of rural population in Ghana are faced with poverty, especially in northern Ghana which records the highest poverty levels. Despite the potential of the shea industry to contribute to alleviating poverty among rural women, little attention has been given to the industry. This paper examined the shea industry as a source of livelihood among rural women as well as the challenges women faced in the industry in Wa Municipality. Cross-sectional research design was employed and data were collected using questionnaires. The results of the study indicate that 93.7% of the women participated in the shea value chain as a main ISSN 2329-9150 2016 http://jsss.macrothink.org 41 source of livelihood strategy; as much as 69.8% of the respondents in the shea industry produce for both subsistence and commercial purposes; majority of the respondents (96%) were engaged in fresh nut collection as well as home processing of nuts, and 86.5% were engaged in shea butter processing; the average annual income per person was GH¢846.85; however, the average annual income for butter processors was much higher than that of nut processors; and the major challenges confronting women in the shea industry includes: limited access to investment capital; cutting down of live shea trees; lack of modern processing equipment and training; and poor pricing of shea products in the local market. The paper calls on government to formulate a clear cut policy for the industry, particularly on marketing of the shea products to make the industry lucrative for women while at the same time increasing the export base of shea products. Journal of Social Science Studies

<p>The banking industry in the Wa Municipality has experienced some growth over the past decade. This results in increased competition among banks in the industry as each bank tries to capture a greater market share. Banks achieve competitive advantage through innovations of products that reflect customers’ expectations. Despite this competition, customer satisfaction in GCB Bank Limited is perceived to be low. However, there is no empirical evidence to establish whether the products and services delivered by the bank meet customers’ expectation. This study was set out to assess the quality of products and services of GCB bank; and to assess the level of customer satisfaction with products and services of GCB bank. The study employed the cross-sectional research design and the mixed research approach so that the research findings could be generalized. Primary data were collected from 155 customers of GCB bank using questionnaires. The customers were selected through accidental sampling. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics. The study revealed that current account, savings account and ATM services were at least of high quality to majority of the respondents. However, over 40% of the respondents were not satisfied with the quality of the bank’s products and services. Management of GCB bank should organize a regular in-service training programme on customer service for the entire staff of the Wa branch in order to improve their customer service skills which would ultimately impact positively on the performance of the bank.</p>

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Health insurance coverage provides the spring board for pregnant women to access and utilise maternal healthcare services. Yet, studies on health insurance coverage, access and utilisation of maternal healthcare are a handful. Consequently, this study examines women's access and utilisation of maternal healthcare services under the free maternal health policy in two districts in northern Ghana. The study adopted the mixed research approach with the aid of the cross-sectional design involving 212 respondents. An interview schedule was utilised in the collection of data. Percentages, Chi-square test for independence and Mann-Whitney U test as well as thematic analysis were used to analyse the data. The study revealed that 93.9% of the respondents had enrolled unto the national health insurance scheme and 98.6% of them went for antennal care. Majority (66.5%) of them had facilitybased delivery. However, 79.7% of them incur cost in seeking delivery care. In brief, health insurance coverage appears to contribute to improved access and utilisation of maternal healthcare services in the two districts. Nonetheless, the government should provide the basic items that are needed for delivery to lessen the cost burden associated with facility-based delivery.

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