Africa: History and Culture

4-9

Authors: Jacob Owusu Sarfo

Rabbit breeding and rabbit meat in Ghana have both political and animal husbandry values. Beginning from the famous “Operation Feed Yourself” (OFY) by the regime of Colonel Ignatius Kutu Acheampong’s National Redemption Council (NRC), rabbits gain popularity into national history, food production and nutrition of Ghanaians. The OFY housed the National Rabbit Project (NRP) which was created and managed by NewloveMamattah. This paper seeks to examine the historical NRP, rabbit production, benefits and potentials existing and future governments in Ghana and other African countries can unearth to advance food production. Although OYF, Mamattah and the NRP made historic triumphs, the role of rabbits in national development has not received much attention till date. The loss of interest in raising and consuming rabbit meat may be attributed partly to the political fall of the NRC and the poor political commitment of future governments towards sustainable meat production in Ghana.

17-23

Authors: Marie Correa, Brandon K. Dumas, Chanika Jones, Victor Mbarika

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is the main U.S. agency for development aid programs; just like other poverty-reduction programs in developing countries, it faces policy implementation issues. In 2004 President Bush created the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) as an alternate agency to provide aid based on a set criteria and indicators for high-performing governments. The MCC changes the way the US provides aid for development. Policy implementation is a major issue in developing nations. This paper explores the implementation of the Millennium Challenge Corporation and attempts to link it to the “backward mapping” implementation framework of Elmore.

29-32

Authors: Josephine Cudjoe

Self-esteem is a sociocultural concept that looks at the evaluation of one’s self or the value one places on his or her life, whether positive or negative. High self and low self-esteem have different characteristic features. This paper looks at current issues regarding self-esteem and existing interventions that have emerged so far. Future studies will need to advance interventions with a focus on African cultural factors. They should also look at the role of gender, physical appearance, parenting and other demographic factors on self-esteem.