No abstract

The paper assesses the effects of traditional values (collective conceptions of what is considered good, desirable and proper or bad, undesirable and improper in a given society) and socio-cultural factors (these are models of life, human rights, value systems, customs, beliefs and arts) on human resource management (HRM) in public sector organizations in Ghana and the need for Human Resource (HR) Managers to "rethink their role, to overcome the difficulties inherent in their position". Socio-cultural practices are the distinctive, spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features that characterize a society or a social group. Ghanaian worker in general and the HR manager in particular is influenced by socio-cultural practices and values of a larger society of which he/she is a member. For instance, the HR manager is in dilemma as to whether or not to refuse a worker's permission to attend funerals, naming ceremonies, festivals or visit relatives at hospital during working hours. In other words, HR manager is at crossroads as to what to do in order to maintain his/her job while holding on to his/her socio-cultural practices when some of these practices contravene the organizational code of conduct. Among these factors, is how to deal with the traditional values and socio-cultural environment within which (HR) specialists find themselves. The paper therefore focuses on the impact of some of the traditional values such as the pressure from family members, attitudes and socio-cultural factors. The purposive sampling technique was used to select the directors and the simple random sampling method was used to select the other respondents. Questionnaires were designed and self-administered questionnaire and face-to-face interview methods were used to obtain information for the study. Thus, the traditional values and socio-cultural factors, which the society maintains, remain strong among workers and have impacted on the work of HR specialist in spite of the conflicting values prescribed by the public sector organizations.

The existing literature on the relationship between regulators and street vendors remain fragmented and limited to specific countries and contexts. This article presents a narrative review of the existing literature on the relationship between regulators and street vendors, and through that creates a unified picture of an otherwise fragmented literature and knowledge base. The concepts of negotiation, power, social network, and perception are used to analyze the various strategies street vendors have used in gaining access to urban public spaces in different parts of the developing world. It is revealed that even though city regulators have access to formal power, street vendors possess a variety of negotiating strategies that gives them access to both formal and informal power.

Adding to the growing body of literature on outcomes for children living in orphanages and children's homes, this qualitative study explored the perceptions of institutional personnel Á caregivers, staff members, supervisors, and administrators Á about organizational factors affecting their ability to care for orphaned and vulnerable children living in institutions in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. The participants in this study consisted of 59 caregivers, 7 supervisors, 10 administrators, 4 cooks, 4 teachers, 1 social worker, 1 security guard/driver, and 6 women classified as house helpers. Individual interviews were conducted using an English-written and stated semistructured interview guide the researchers had created. The data from the 92 interviews were transcribed and coded using inductive methodologies. The results revealed concerns from the personnel about their institutions' lack of adequate funding for essential items, including food and medicine for the children. The personnel were also concerned about the lack of appropriate workplace standards to ensure the sustainability of a viable workplace environment, including inadequate training, supervision, communication procedures, and staffing patterns, and collaborative partnerships and associations with other public or private community-based institutions. The findings from this study have considerable policy, practice, and research implications for social workers.

Street foods play an important role in the lives of urban residents in developing countries. Consequently, there has been a lot of research into the nutritional quality of street vended foods, and the safety and hygiene of these foods. Researchers in Ghana have focused not only on the safety and hygiene of street foods but also on the effectiveness of regulations of these foods. While these provide important knowledge base for policy and action, very little has been done on challenges to improve the quality of local street vended foods. This study presents qualitative data from key stakeholders (vendors, consumers, regulators), on the challenges and opportunities to improve the quality of street vended local foods. Results show several challenges that relate to the safety and hygienic conditions at preparation and sale environments, and issues with the local regulatory authorities, inadequate capital with its related challenges and insecure space for street food vendors. This research recommends that efficient and effective collaboration between all actors and relevant institutions could offer the vendors an opportunity and capacity to provide healthy, affordable and preferred local dishes of cultural value to consumers.