Centuries after the infamous slave trade era, there has been an influx of the diaspora to visit the continent of Africa. These nationalities, a lot of whom call the continent the “motherland”, undertake these trips for a variety of reasons, including reconnecting with ancestors. This study explores the information needs of the African American diaspora when travelling to Ghana, and compares their accounts with local Ghanaians. Using qualitative methodology, the findings suggest that for tourists, this lack of information has sometimes led to disappointment as the reality can sometimes be different than expectations. These travelers need accurate information related to food, culture, politics, language, and society. The results of this research are useful to the African American diasporic community, librarians in area studies or at universities where students may embark on trips to Africa, or for public librarians who engage with people interested in diasporic tourism.
This special edition of the Ghana Library Journal features six carefully selected papers from an international conference hosted by the Department of Information Studies, University of Ghana. Held from October 30 to 31, 2024, under the theme “Fostering Research on Information Behaviour and Digital Literacy in Africa,” the conference attracted a diverse community of scholars, practitioners, and policymakers. Organised in a hybrid format, the event welcomed participants from across Africa and beyond, reflecting the global relevance and reach of its core themes. A highlight of the proceedings was the keynote address delivered by Professor Wole Michael Olatokun of the University of Ibadan, whose insights offered a foundation for the conference’s central theme. The event also proudly welcomed Emeritus Professor Anaba A. Alemna of the University of Ghana as guest speaker, whose distinguished contributions to the field and ongoing mentorship were warmly acknowledged by participants. Throughout plenary sessions, breakout groups, and post-panel dialogues, the conference sparked rich conversations across a wide array of topics: from the rise of open access and AI-powered archives to the evolving role of libraries as digital learning spaces, and the practical challenges of data protection in public services. What emerged was a shared commitment to building inclusive, responsive, and ethically grounded information systems for the continent.
This study investigated the role of digital communication tools on patient-provider interactions in the Civil Service Clinic. It aimed to understand how tools such as telemedicine, secure messaging, and patient portals influenced healthcare delivery in terms of accessibility, efficiency, and patient engagement. The findings revealed that these digital platforms improved communication by allowing patients quicker access to healthcare services and more convenient ways to engage with providers. However, challenges were identified, including a reduction in the personal connection between patients and providers, particularly in virtual consultations, as well as gaps in digital literacy that affected certain patient populations, such as older adults and those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. Ethical concerns related to data privacy and security also emerged, underscoring the need for robust measures to protect sensitive health information. The study concluded that while digital communication tools offer numerous advantages, a balanced approach is required to ensure that they are accessible to all, safeguard patient data, and preserve the human aspect of healthcare, which remains essential for trust and empathy in patient care.
Gerald Annan Forson’s photographic collection deposited at the J. H. Kwabena Nketia Archives offers captivating socio-political, economic, urbanization and cultural lifestyle of the Ghanaian people. The collection serves as an invaluable resource to students, scholars and the public. Annan Forson’s distinct techniques and skills offer a unique insight and clear details of capturing two decades of Ghanaian presidential history and socio-political movement. Inside the helm of the socio-political activities of government includes the change of government from military to civilian and from civilian to military, government projects, dignitary visitations and meetings, rallies and protest, elections and physical landscape of Ghana. However, this paper explores two case studies, one is the discovery of an old band named the Kyirem Cultural Band and St George’s International School learning experience at the J. H. Kwabena Nketia Archives. The photographic collection reawakened and connected the band again to exhibit their talent. On the other hand, the collection offered students from St. George’s International School a pictorial understanding of what was studied in class about government as a subject. Ultimately, Annan Forson’s unique collection is resource poise to inspire and learn from diverse group of ages.
This study conducted a comprehensive bibliometric analysis to map the landscape of open science research in Africa. Open science practices, including open-access publishing, open data sharing, open educational resources, open source, and open collaboration, have the potential to enhance scientific transparency, innovation, and collaboration. However, the adoption and implementation of open science principles vary across regions, and there is a need to understand the current state of open science research within the African context. A total of 302 datasets of documents from Scopus (Elsevier), from inception to 2023, were extracted, analysed, and visualised using software like MS Excel, Harzing’s Publish or Perish and VOSviewer. A team of information specialists crafted the requisite keywords and verified the final search strategy. The results showed an increasing trend in new documents in open science in Africa. The most active source titles were Library Philosophy and Practice with 17 (7.02%), followed by Open Access Implication for Sustainable Social, Political, and Economic Development, and the African Journal of Library, Archives, and Information Science with 8 (3.31%). South Africa and Nigeria were the most influential countries contributing 59 (19.54%) and 56 (18.54%) publications in the subject area, respectively. The most productive authors were Ezema, I. J., and Nwagwu, W.E. with four documents each. The University of South Africa and the University of Nigeria were the most influential institutions with a total of publications 17 and 13, respectively. The citation analysis of highly cited articles pointed out that Mentis et al. (2017) and Duan et al. (2019) were the most cited articles in the subject area with 140 and 100 cites, respectively. The keywords analysis showed that open access, Africa, and open data were the most frequently used author keywords with 49 (20.25%), 35 (14.46%), and 34 (14.05%) total publications, respectively. The co-occurrence of research terms revealed four clusters of interconnected concepts, thematically organised around open access, human, Africa, and open-source software. The research will enhance comprehension within the field and is anticipated to assist researchers, students, and educators in pinpointing research areas, developments, high-quality scientific literature, and suitable journals for disseminating their findings related to open science. Furthermore, the study gives insights into the present state of open science research in Africa, which will guide policies, financing strategies, and capacity-building programmes targeted at supporting open science practices and furthering scientific research and innovation across the continent.
