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Project Planning and Welfare of Households: A Case of Biogas Project in Huye District, Rwanda
No full textThe purpose of this study was to assess the role of project planning on the welfare of the household with a biogas project case in Huye District. This research was guided by three objectives including assessing the role of biogas project budgetary planning on welfare of households in Huye District, to examine the effect of biogas project planning activities on welfare of households in Huye District, and to establish the relationship between biogas project Standard cost and welfare of households in Huye District. This research will be significant to policy makers, future researchers, students and lecturers who will use the results of the study as point of reference in formulating new policies and doing further research in this field of the study. The research was also tracked by project management theory and Becker’s new household economic theory. The study involved descriptive research design, 184 people of whom 105 respondents were drawn by using purposive and simple random sampling techniques as the primary informants of the study. The study findings were collected using questionnaire and interview guide but before actual time of collecting data, these data collection instruments were pre-tested during a pilot study to prove its validity and reliability. The findings of the first objective have shown that the general perception tends to 1.8806 indicating stronger tendency which implies that biogas project budgetary planning affects welfare of households. While the results of the second objective demonstrated that the overall mean is 1.770 which implies that biogas project planning activities affects welfare of households to a very great extent. Lastly, the results of the third object show that there is a strong relationship between project budgetary planning and income generating activities (r=.637 and sig=.000), between project budgetary planning and livelihood diversification (r=.526 and sig=.000), between project budgetary planning and improved standards of living (r=.600 and sig=.000), between project planning activities and livelihood diversification (r=.723 and sig=.000), between project planning activities and improved standards of living (r=.872 and sig=.000), between income generating activities and project planning activities (r=.789 and sig=.000), between standard cost and livelihood diversification (r=.728 and sig=.000), and between standard cost and improved standards of living (r=.904 and sig=.000). This implies that there is a relationship between biogas project planning and the welfare of household in Huye District, Rwanda. Thus, basing on the results, the researcher recommends to rural households to adopt biogas project in order to save time that they spent cooking, to adopt biogas generation for health and sanitation purposes because it helps to ensure better health that is free of diseases related to smoke; and also recommends to the local government to encourage rural households to ensure that those at least with vast land should have biogas generation in their households so that the number of people who own biogas should be increase to ensure welfare of the households in rural areas.
Keywords: Construction delays, cost overrun, regional cybercrime center, Rwand
Entrepreneurial Innovative Skills and Financial Performance of Women-Owned Enterprises in Balogun Market, Lagos Island, Nigeria
No full textThis paper explored the relationship between innovative skills and financial performance of women owned enterprises in Balogun Market, Lagos Island, Nigeria. This study was guided by Hoselitz’s Theory of entrepreneurship supported by the innovative theory of entrepreneurship. This study adopted the correlational research design. The target population was 1000 entrepreneurs of small and medium-sized women-owned business enterprises in Balogun market the fluid survey formula was used to select a sample of 280 entrepreneurs. Questionnaires were used to collect the required primary data. The study utilized both descriptive and inferential statistics to analyze and interpret the data, Descriptive statistical techniques comprising of frequency distributions, tabulation, and numerical descriptive measures of percentages, means and standard deviations were used to summarize, organize, interpret and present the primary data. To measure the extent of association between the independent and dependent variables of study the inferential statistical tool comprising of Pearson correlation coefficient was employed. Ethics of objectivity, informed, maintenance of confidentiality, and anonymity, and voluntary participation were strictly adhered to. Findings showed that there is a strong significant relationship between innovative skills and financial performance of women owned enterprises. The study concludes that women entrepreneurs are innovative to some extent though they tend to invest on new products/services without prior market research which may lead to failure especially if the demand for new products is out of a wave that may not last long. Innovation is necessity in entrepreneurship since it has been recognized as a crucial enabler of increased profitability. The study recommended that women entrepreneurs should continuously strive to enhance innovativeness to strengthen the performance of their enterprises.
Keywords: Entrepreneurial Innovation, innovative skills, Women-Owned Enterprises financial performanc
Stakeholder Participation and Performance of Funded Project in Rwanda: A Case of Aveh Umurerwa Project in Bugesera District
No full textThe main purpose of this study was to examine the role of stakeholder participation in project performance of funded project in Rwanda. The specific objectives of the study were based on assessing the role of consultative planning, collective implementation and joint monitoring and project performance of AVEH Umurerwa project in Bugesera District of Rwanda. The study target population was 251 people in which 188 respondents were drawn as a sample size of the study in AVEH Umurerwa project in Bugesera District of Rwanda. The researcher used descriptive research design with a mixed approach of qualitiative and quantitative data. Thus, the study used the questionnaires and interview guides to collect data from the field. The stratified random sampling technique was used to ensure that all the stakeholders of the funded project are selected with the equal chance to participate in the study as from each group of the respondents. The results of the first objective revealed that consultative planning plays a significant and a positive role on performance of funded project in Rwanda since the descriptive results shown 1.621 overall mean and the Pearson correlation results confirmed that there is a positive and significant relationship between consultative planning and quality performance(r=0.712 and sig=0.00<0.01), budgetary performance (r=0.717 and sig=0.00<0.01), and schedule performance (r= 0.783 and sig=0.00<0.01) which implies that there is positive and significant relationship between consultative planning and performance of funded projects in Rwanda. The results of the second objective revealed that collective implementation plays a significant and a positive effect on performance of funded project in Rwanda since the descriptive results shown 1.324 of overall mean; when Pearson correlation results proved a positive and significant relationship between collective implementation and budgetary performance (r=0.647 and sig=0.00<0.01), schedule performance (r=0.639 and sig=0.00<0.01), and quality performance (r= 0.696 and sig=0.00<0.01) which implies that collective implementation has a positive and significant relationship with performance of funded projects in Rwanda. Lastly, the results of the third objective revealed that a big number of respondents strongly agreed that joint monitoring plays a significant role in performance which is also supported by the correlation results which revealed that joint monitoring and budgetary performance has (r=0.650 and sig=0.00<0.01), schedule performance has (r=0.644 and sig=0.00<0.01), and quality performance has (r= 0.705 and sig=0.00<0.01) which implies that there is positive and significant relationship between joint monitoring and performance of funded projects in Rwanda. Thus, basing on the results the researcher concluded that stakeholder participation plays a significant and positive role in performance of funded project in Rwanda.
Keywords: Stakeholder Participation, Performance of Funded Projects, Rwand
Rural Non-Farm Enterprises Needs towards Positive Rural Livelihood Outcomes in Kiambu County, Kenya
No full textRural non-farm activities contribute to the agricultural value chain. These activities include agro-processing, breeding, transport, distribution, marketing and retail. The need to recognise the factors that influence people to engage in diversified rural non-farm activities in the agricultural sector has been noted to be crucial, as it can act as a guide to strategising and promoting the agricultural sector. Therefore, this study sought to assess the support that RNFEs need to ensure positive rural livelihood outcomes. The study adopted an epistemology philosophy. The target population was all non-farm small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Kiambu County who have prevailed by supporting agrarian related exercises. This population of RNFEs came from every one of the 12 sub-areas: Gatundu North, Gatundu South, Thika, Juja, Githunguri, Ruiru, Kiambu, Kiambaa, Kabete, Kikuyu, Lari and Limuru. The study investigated five rural non-farm undertakings occupied with the accompanying regions: agribusiness activities, rural industrialisation ventures, transport services, the travel industry activities and development ventures. The study used questionnaires and interview guides for primary data collection. The inferential model indicated that there was a strong relationship between government and farmers. Many enterprises were not able to obtain finances for start-up businesses and/or expansion of their businesses. The main contributory factors to rural livelihood outcomes were (a) to have access to income and (b) to be able to gain employment. RNFEs is a way of improving rural infrastructure development, which allows production and growth of basic goods and services. Forms of government support that have been experienced include legislation, financing, empowerment of the marginalised and improvement of infrastructure, with the most important support coming from improvement of infrastructure. The major support that RNFEs are able to access are improvement of infrastructure such as roads, hospitals and learning institutions, which enable quick development and growth. The study further recommends on the need for a support mechanism procedure for RNFEs. The study recommended on availability of cheap loans with low interest rates for farmers. The lending interest rates were unaffordable for RNFEs, thus making it challenging for the growth of rural livelihood outcome from an entrepreneurship perspective.
Keywords: Rural Non-Farm Enterprises, government support, Livelihood Outcomes, Kiambu County, Keny
Participatory Project Cycle Management and Performance of Donor Funded Projects in Mandera County, Kenya
No full textThe performance of donor funded projects in the global arena has been linked by previous studies to participatory project cycle management. According to report by senate county public accounts and investment committee report of 2019, 60% donor funded projects in Mandera County did not perform as expected and did not achieve their objectives. The study's particular goals were to evaluate the impact of participatory identification of the project, planning, implementation and monitoring and assessment on performance of projects in Mandera County supported by donations. The research was directed by community action planning theory, Freire’s theory, Arnstein’s Ladder of citizen participation and theory of change.The research was done using a descriptive research approach.. The study's intended audience was 84 donor funded projects in Mandera County. The size of the sample for the study was 16 donor funded projects representing 20% of the total sample size. The selection process used stratified random sampling. 16 project coordinators from the sampled donor funded projects and 344 household heads the households benefiting based on the chosen donor-funded programs in Mandera County. Questionnaires for household heads and interview schedules for the project coordinators were used as the primary data collection instruments. The acquired data was cleaned, coded, and put into the SPSS version 21 statistical package for social sciences. The study discovered that participation of key stakeholders in project identification, planning, implementation and monitoring and evaluation have a significant influence on performance of donor funded projects in Mandera County. The study recommends that organizations executing projects in Mandera County should encourage participation of the community Due to their major impact on the success of initiatives sponsored by donors, they are taken into account in project planning, monitoring, and assessment.. Further studies should be conducted to assess the determinants of low community participation in planning and monitoring and evaluation. The current study only sampled household heads and ignored other stakeholders. Therefore future studies should replicate the current study but widen the scope of the sampled respondents to include other stakeholders.
Keywords: Participatory Project, Cycle Management, Donor Funded Projects, Projects Performance, Project Monitoring
Relationship between Advertisement and Consumer Brand Preference at LG Couture France
No full textConsumers influence the performance of an organization. When a customer chooses one brand over another consistently, it increases an organization's competitive advantage. Customers are more likely to choose a product from a brand they know and will often become loyal to a particular brand if they trust its products and feel its qualities match their needs. Thus, the study sought to examine the effect of advertisement on consumer brand preference at LG Couture France. The study relied upon the literature to make the inferences. The study findings showed that advertisement positively affects consumer brand preference. Advertisements guide, educate, inform and shield the interest of the consumers. Advertising is among the most effective and vital ways to offer consumers an idea or alter their opinion concerning a specific product or service, which businesses globally usually use. The study noted that consumer brand preference is essential to understanding consumer choice behaviors and has received great attention from marketers. The advertising is linked with brand loyalty which increases the repurchase again and again over a long period. The companies that have increased their advertisements of the products they offer can establish an expansive consumer base. The study concluded that advertisement positively and significantly affects consumer brand preference at LG Couture France due to prior studies' results. Advertisements increase familiarity and trust between a company and its customers. If potential customers see numerous advertisements about the product, they may consider it a trusted brand. The study recommended that LG Couture France ensure product advertisements are done regularly. The company should perform advertising initiatives to enhance product purchases. The company should not only apply one form of advertisement because of the nature of the consumer preferences.
Keywords: Advertisement, Consumer Brand Preference, LG Couture Franc
Effect of Climate Change on Agricultural Productivity in Japan
No full textThe study sought to examine the effect of climate change on agricultural productivity in Japan. The study adopted the cross-section research design. Questionnaires were used to collect the data. The respondents included farmers and officials in Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. The study indicated the negative and significant correlation between agricultural productivity and climate change. Climate change was found to be satisfactory in explaining agricultural productivity in Japan. The results indicated that climate change is a good predictor of agricultural productivity. The regression results showed that climate change is negatively and significantly related to agricultural productivity. The results implied that when the climate change deteriorates by one unit, the agricultural productivity will reduce by 0.327 units holding other factors constant. The effect of climate change is frequent wildfires, more extended periods of drought in some regions and an increase in the number, duration and intensity of tropical storms. The study recommended there is a need to focus on planet-friendly investments. Individuals can spur change through savings and investments by choosing financial institutions that do not invest in carbon-polluting industries. The government needs to accomplish sensitization program awareness on cause, influence, reduction and adjustment to environmental change. The government needs to additionally urge the adoption of smart agriculture where farmers do not count on rain feed agriculture but on scientific agriculture. It should provide farmers with drought-resistant seeds and livestock to improve production and ensure food security in Japan. Technological development can decrease the unfavorable effects of weather irregularity and might affect global adaptation efforts favoring various nations. There should be an emphasis on more tree planting in the country.
Keywords: Climate Change, Agricultural Productivity, Japa
Supply Chain Management Practices and Performance of Public Institutions in Rwanda: A Case of Rwanda Biomedical Center
No full textThe purpose of this research was to assess the role of supply chain management practices in the performance of the public institution in Rwanda the case of Rwanda Biomedical Center (RBC) The study specifically looked at the role of Strategic supplier partnership, customer relationship and information sharing on organization performance of RBC. The study was important to RBC, public institutions in Rwanda and other private institutions. To elaborate on the role of supply chain management practices in the performance of the public institution in the related literature, the researcher was guided by the study objectives. The study was guided by the theory of constraints and information sharing theory. The research design was used as descriptive while the population is 450 employees of Rwanda Biomedical Center and the sample size was 82 respondents. Purposive and simple random sample procedures were used for data collection. The researcher obtained primary data using a questionnaire and analyzed it using qualitative and quantitative methods. Descriptive studies were used to examine the data, and inferences were drawn from the data using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22. The data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential data analysis, with tables, charts, and percentage studies showing that they all had a substantial impact on Rwanda Biomedical Centre's performance. For instance, strategic supplier partnership (0.305, p < 0.05); customer relationship (0.482, p < 0.5) and information sharing (0.183, p < 0.05) were all significantly affecting the performance of Rwanda Biomedical Centre. The study further found that there was a variation of 66.5% in the Customer Relationship, information sharing, and strategic supplier partnership at a 95% confidence interval. This shows that 66.5% changes in the performance of the public institutions in Rwanda. According to the findings, Rwanda Biomedical Centre/effectiveness RBC is aided by smart supplier partnerships, customer relationships, and information exchange. Managers are advised to increase the organization's performance by cultivating supplier relationships. Managers must also build a clear channel of communication and collaboration between suppliers and customers to be effective.
Keywords: Supply Chain Management Practices, Performance of Public Institutions, Rwanda Biomedical Center, Rwanda
 
Analysis of the Satisfaction of Women with the Quality of Maternal Health Services at the Federal Medical Centre, Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria
No full textThe study examined satisfaction of women with maternal health services at the Federal Medical Centre, Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria. This was a descriptive cross-sectional study with a sample size of 381 drawn from women attending ante-natal and postnatal clinic at the hospital using systematic sampling technique. Quantitative data was collected using a likert-type questionnaire and was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 21. Data was summarized using descriptive and statistical analysis; the chi-square test was used to test the association between independent and dependent variables. Level of statistical significance was set at p< 0.05 (5%). Findings of the study showed that most (82.9%) of the women were satisfied with the quality of maternal health services. The age and marital status did not influence the satisfaction of women with maternal health care services, education and income influenced the satisfaction of the women with maternal health services. Staff adequacy, staff attitude and competence influenced the satisfaction of women with maternal health services at the facility. Availability, modernity and functionality of medical products and technology influenced the satisfaction of women with maternal health services at the facility. The study revealed that communication by the facility staff on the medical procedures and medication, communication of bookings, and timeliness of communication on treatment follow-up influenced the satisfaction of women with maternal health services at the facility. The study recommends the need for health staff to improve the empathy dimension in their work, improvement on the medical products and technology, from the availability, functionality and modernity, and improvement in service delivery with specific attention to women with higher incomes who reported lower satisfaction ratios compared to those with lower incomes.
Keywords: Maternal Health Services, Socio-Demographic Factors, Satisfaction, Health Workforce Factors, Medical Products and Technological Factors, Information and Communication
Health-Related Quality of Life for Primary Caregivers of Mentally ILL Patients in Kenya
No full textThe mentally ill patients have been shifted from institutions to home based care involving the family and the community than the straight in-hospital treatment. Consequently, the prevalence of mental illness is rising which is proportional to increased burden the primary caregivers’ face that affect their HRQoL. The aim of this study was to determine the Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) and associated factors of primary caregivers of the mentally ill patients at the largest teaching and referral psychiatry hospital in Kenya. A correlational study was used. Systemic random sampling was used to recruit 310 caregivers of mentally ill patients in the outpatient clinic. The WHOQoL-BREF questionnaire was used to assess Caregivers HRQoL. Statistical package for social sciences version 25.0 was used for analysis. Pearson was used to test relationships between variables and multivariate regression models were used to determine predictors of HRQoL. On quality rating 1-5, Majority (34.4%, mean 2.61 SD 1.05) of the participants reported poor HRQoL. Caregivers’ marital status ( .292, =0.000), relationship with the patient ( .166, =0.004) and patient gender ( .188, =0.001) significantly correlated with primary caregivers’ poor HRQoL. Patients’ review with compliance to treatment (61.5%), and health system support ( .420, P=0.000), were significantly associated with primary caregivers’ HRQoL. Specialized psychiatric and mental health professionals with policy designers to realize characteristics which impact the caregivers ’HRQoL so that intervention is done especially Psycho-education on patient care, encourage social support groups and improve health support system.
Keywords: Health Related Quality of Life, Primary caregivers, mentally ill Patients