The University of Cape Coast is a public collegiate university located in the historic town of Cape Coast. The campus has a rare seafront and sits on a hill overlooking the wide Atlantic Ocean. It operates on two campuses: the Southern Campus (Old Site) and the Northern Campus (New Site). Two of the most important historical sites in Ghana, Elmina and Cape Coast Castle, are a few kilometres away from its campus.The University of Cape Coast was established in October 1962 as a university college in response to the country's dire need for highly qualified and skilled manpower in the education sector. Its original mandate was therefore to train graduate teachers for second cycle institutions, teacher training colleges and technical institutions, a mission that the two existing public universities at the time were unequipped to fulfil. On October 1, 1971, the college attained the status of a full and independent university, with the authority to confer its own degrees, diplomas and certificates by an Act of Parliament. Today, with the expansion of some of its faculties/schools and the diversification of programmes, the university has the capacity to meet the manpower needs of other ministries and industries in the country, besides that of the Ministry of Education.The university has since added to its functions the training of doctors and health care professionals, business professionals, administrators, legal professionals, and agriculturalists. UCC graduates include Ministers of State, High Commissioners, CEOs, and Members of Parliament.
Financial Management requires students to integrate motivational, behavioural, and cognitive competencies to solve financial problems. However, existing research has predominantly examined these learner characteristics independently, providing limited understanding of how they coexist to shape learning. This study adopted a person-centred approach to identify distinct learning configurations based on task value, effort regulation, and critical thinking among Business students studying Financial Management. A cross-sectional survey design was employed to collect data from 168 students using validated measures, and Latent Profile Analysis identified naturally occurring learning profiles. Four distinct learning configurations emerged: Low Learning Orientation (10.1%), Developing Learning Orientation (11.9%), Motivated but Cognitively Emerging Orientation (31.0%), and Integrated Learning Configuration (47.0%). The Integrated Learning Configuration represented the largest group. Notably, the Motivated but Cognitively Emerging Orientation profile reflected students with stronger task value and effort regulation relative to critical thinking. This finding suggests that valuing learning and regulating effort alone may be insufficient for developing higher-order financial reasoning. Profile membership differed by programme of study but not by sex or age. The study advances management education by conceptualising learning in Financial Management as an integrated configuration of motivational, behavioural, and cognitive dimensions rather than isolated learner characteristics, informing pedagogical connoisseurship in practice.
Abstract This perspective paper examines transition pathways that move small‐scale fisheries from vulnerability towards viability. We understand ‘vulnerability to viability transition pathways’ as integrative and one that extends beyond economic concerns to include social, political, cultural and ecological aspects of small‐scale fisheries. Our findings draw on a reflexive and qualitative assessment of country‐specific case studies from across Africa and Asia to collaboratively identify transition pathways reflected in these contexts. Common pathways that emerged included: (1) building governance networks and partnerships; (2) centring small‐scale fisheries tenure and rights; (3) advancing a gender and intersectional perspective on viability pathways; (4) enhancing opportunities for ecologically sensitive and diversified livelihoods; and (5) co‐creating and co‐producing the knowledge required to catalyse transition pathways. Outcomes of this analysis provide context‐specific foundations upon which to further co‐develop a research agenda on small‐scale fisheries vulnerability to viability transitions. Insights from this analysis also contribute to the identification of the transdisciplinary capacities needed to build more viable and resilient small‐scale fisheries in the context of ongoing debates about blue economy expansion, and in relation to country‐level commitments to implement provisions of the FAO small‐scale fisheries guidelines. In advancing a vulnerability to viability pathways lens, this paper frames small‐scale fisheries transitions as governance‐mediated, justice‐oriented, relational and inherently non‐linear processes. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.
Tourism market participation (TMP) is increasingly promoted as a pathway for sustainable rural development, yet evidence on its nutritional benefits and the institutional conditions shaping these outcomes remains limited. This study investigates the association between TMP and household nutritional intake among rural households in Ghana and tests whether government support moderates this link, drawing on institutional theory. Using household survey data and econometric models that address potential endogeneity, the results show that TMP is positively and significantly associated with nutritional intake, indicating that engagement in tourism-related market activities is linked to improved diet quality. Government support exhibits differentiated effects. Technical and financial support are positively associated with dietary diversity and significantly strengthen the TMP to nutrition relationship. In contrast, regulatory support is negatively associated with dietary diversity and significantly weakens the TMP to nutrition relationship. Heterogeneity analysis shows that the positive nutrition effects of TMP are present across income, gender, and age groups, but are stronger among high-income households, females, and adults, underscoring distributional concerns and the need for inclusive policy design. Overall, the findings demonstrate that institutional arrangements can either enable or constrain welfare gains from market participation. The study advances the sustainable development agenda by linking tourism participation to food and nutrition security, with implications for SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) and SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth). The results suggest that tourism-based nutrition strategies are more effective when paired with targeted technical and financial assistance and streamlined, context-appropriate regulation.
This study examines Ghanaian undergraduate tourism and hospitality (T&H) students' perception of employability, focusing on the impact of support systems and career management strategies. Specifically, it examines whether self-efficacy and ambition help explain the relationship between career-related social support (PCRSS), career self-managed behavior (CSMB), and employability outcomes. A quantitative approach was used, involving survey data from 593 third- and final-year students across four public tertiary institutions in Ghana. The direct and indirect relationships among the key constructs were measured using PLS-SEM. The study found that PCRSS and CSMB did not directly affect employability; instead, their effects were indirect. Psychological traits significantly influence employability, suggesting that students' confidence and motivation to pursue their goals are crucial for achieving career support and career behaviors. The study explores psychological factors influencing employability in a developing country's T&H sector, enhancing Social Cognitive Career Theory by emphasizing the link between self-efficacy and ambition.
This study examines how artificial intelligence (AI)-driven decision making influences entrepreneurial scaling, highlighting the mediating role of entrepreneurial agility and the moderating effect of digital literacy. Using a survey approach, data were collected from 370 newly established businesses to test the proposed structural relationships. The results show that AI enhances scaling outcomes both directly and indirectly through agility, while the digital literacy of the founder strengthens entrepreneurial scaling and amplifies AI's effect on growth. The study contributes to the digital entrepreneurship literature by integrating mechanisms of mediation and moderation into the AI-scaling nexus, highlighting the interplay between technological capabilities and organizational agility. Managerially, the findings suggest that entrepreneurs should complement AI adoption with the development of agility and digital skills. At the policy level, the results underscore the importance of digital training programs, incentives for AI adoption, and supportive infrastructure to enable entrepreneurs to leverage emerging technologies for sustainable growth and scaling.
