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Article History

Received: 5 February 2026

Accepted: 12 May 2026

First Online: 4 June 2026

Declarations

:

: Ethical clearance was sought from the Committee on Human Research, Publications and Ethics (CHRPE) of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) prior to the commencement of the study, with the approval number CHRPE/AP/451/25. The study was conducted in accordance with the ethical principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki. Parents or guardians of the students were notified about the study, and their awareness was confirmed through communication facilitated by the school administration. Written informed consent was obtained from the parents and guardians for respondents under 18 years, while adolescents provided assent prior to completing the questionnaire. Those aged 18 years and above provided independent written informed consent. All responses were anonymized using unique codes to ensure confidentiality. Participants’ rights to privacy and autonomy were fully respected, and they were informed of their right to withdraw from the study at any point without penalty.

: This study did not include any identifiable personal data of respondents. Therefore, the declaration of consent to publish is not applicable.

: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest, whether personal or financial, related to this study.