Digitalization in Africa: The Case of Public Programs in Ghana

Ayakwah, Anthony; Damoah, Isaac Sakyi; Osabutey, Ellis L.C.

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-70538-1_2

Cited by 21 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…Although the country has a high penetration of mobile phone services, it may be difficult to get hr-HPV-positive women to screening centers on multiple occasions due to additional costs associated with transportation. Further, even though attempts have been made in recent times to implement a digital addressing system for houses in many cities and towns in Ghana in addition to street naming [ 26 ], many Ghanaians do not have permanent addresses, making a call-recall system for a national cervical cancer prevention program difficult to implement. Further, in similar low-resource settings, a lack of understanding of cervical cancer as a disease, the screening process, and its outcomes, linked with poor socioeconomic circumstances and low levels of male partner support have been identified as hampering adherence to follow-up after an initial positive screening test [ 27 , 28 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Concurrent HPV DNA testing and a visual inspection method for cervical precancer screening: A practical approach from Battor, Ghana

Effah

Tekpor

Wormenor

et al. 2023

PLOS Glob Public Health

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Cytology-based cervical cancer screening programs have been difficult to implement and scale up in developing countries. Thus, the World Health Organization recommends a ‘see and treat’ approach by way of hr-HPV testing and visual inspection. We aimed to evaluate concurrent HPV DNA testing and visual inspection in a real-world low-resource setting by comparing the detection rates of concurrent visual inspection with dilute acetic acid (VIA) or mobile colposcopy and hr-HPV DNA testing to standalone hr-HPV DNA testing (using the careHPV, GeneXpert, AmpFire, or MA-6000 platforms). We further compared their rates of loss to follow-up. This retrospective, descriptive cross-sectional study included all 4482 women subjected to cervical precancer screening at our facility between June 2016 and March 2022. The rates of EVA and VIA ‘positivity’ were 8.6% (95% CI, 6.7–10.6) and 2.1 (95% CI, 1.6–2.5), respectively, while the hr-HPV-positivity rate was 17.9% (95% CI, 16.7–19.0). Overall, 51 women in the entire cohort tested positive on both hr-HPV DNA testing and visual inspection (1.1%; 95% CI, 0.9–1.5), whereas a large majority of the women tested negative (3588/4482, 80.1%) for both and 2.1% (95% CI, 1.7–2.6) tested hr-HPV-negative but visual inspection ‘positive’. In total, 191/275 (69.5%) participants who tested hr-HPV positive on any platform, as a standalone test for screening, returned for at least one follow-up visit. In light of factors such as poor socioeconomic circumstances, additional transportation costs associated with multiple screening visits, and lack of a reliable address system in many parts of Ghana, we posit that standalone HPV DNA testing with recall of hr-HPV positives will be tedious for a national cervical cancer prevention program. Our preliminary data show that concurrent testing (hr-HPV DNA testing alongside visual inspection by way of VIA or mobile colposcopy) may be more cost-effective than recalling hr-HPV-positive women for colposcopy.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Concurrent HPV DNA testing and a visual inspection method for cervical precancer screening: A practical approach from Battor, Ghana

Effah

Tekpor

Wormenor

et al. 2023

PLOS Glob Public Health

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“…They were fiercely competing in software and applications platforms for everything from finance and payments to agriculture and medical services (WB, 2019). Government digitalization programs included sectors like the ports and harbours, national health insurance services, utility bill payments, financial services and digital addressing systems (Ayakwah, et al, 2021). Cornerstone projects included a comprehensive digital address system, essential for digital commerce.…”

Section: ) Côte D'ivoirementioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of digitalization on poverty alleviation in Africa

Kohnert

2021

SSRN Journal

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“…In recent years, governments around the globe are increasingly relying on different kinds of technologies to improve service delivery and curb corruption through digitalisation (Addo, 2021; Bahn et al , 2021). Through digitalisation, public sector efficiency and increased productivity can be achieved (Ayakwah et al , 2021). Digital technologies are rapidly spreading, creating opportunities for long-term growth.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Examining the linkages between digitalisation, public service delivery and corruption in Ghana

Abdul-Salam,

Adam,

Alhassan

et al. 2024

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Purpose This study aims to examine the linkages between digitalisation, public service delivery and corruption in Ghana using survey data from 121 respondents in Ghana. The authors also examine the mediating role public service delivery offers on corruption. Design/methodology/approach This study relied on the capability theory as its theoretical lens and partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) as the data analysis technique. Findings Results from the PLS-SEM analysis show that public service delivery significantly reduces corruption, whilst digitalisation does not. However, public service delivery significantly mediated the relationship between digitalisation and corruption. Research limitations/implications This study’s limitation is that the data was collected from Ghana only. To enhance the generalisability of findings, future research could collect data from multiple countries. In addition, the study did not factor in the moderating effects of demographic variables such as information and communication technology (ICT) literacy. Future research could consider these variables, given the low ICT literacy level of individuals in developing countries. Finally, future researchers could triangulate results with interviews and focus groups to provide more value to the identified questionnaire-based data. Practical implications The findings of this study highlight the need for digitalisation to be included in Ghana’s national policy objectives and service delivery objectives. It is essential for the government to ensure broader public engagement with stakeholders, including citizens, to ensure that digitalisation goals are achieved. The study’s results indicate that digitalisation does not significantly influence corruption. This calls for the government of Ghana to consider raising the level of human capital for the successful planning and deployment of e-services. This includes raising citizen ICT literacy and adopting cutting-edge technology to fully realize the benefits of online services. Developing capabilities, e-government leadership, and public sector employees as enablers of online public services should go hand-in-hand. It is also important to build connected capacities in the country and enhance access to information and technology, along with increasing digital infrastructure. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to examine and offer a dual perspective on the role of digitalisation on public service delivery and corruption whilst considering the mediating role public service delivery offers on corruption.

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Digitalization in Africa: The Case of Public Programs in Ghana

Cited by 21 publications

References 60 publications

Concurrent HPV DNA testing and a visual inspection method for cervical precancer screening: A practical approach from Battor, Ghana

Concurrent HPV DNA testing and a visual inspection method for cervical precancer screening: A practical approach from Battor, Ghana

The impact of digitalization on poverty alleviation in Africa

Examining the linkages between digitalisation, public service delivery and corruption in Ghana

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