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The Dynamics of Poverty, Inequality and Economic Well Being in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya
Get PDFIt is hard to imagine an issue in development economics that is of greater importance to humankind than the effects of economic growth on poverty and economic well being. Hence this study is stimulated by the desire to have an in depth knowledge of the key factors that determine regional poverty, inequality and economic well being. This then helps analysts and policy makers to design effective targeting indicators. The major objective of this study is to investigate the profile of income inequality and poverty among identified socio-economic groups. The data used are based on the 1994 Welfare Monitoring Survey (Government of Kenya 1998, 2000). These data
were collected for the whole county and covered nearly 272 households. The existing sub counties were clustered into six agro-regional zones. Using standard proportional random sampling, aided with data from Central Bureau of Statistics, households were randomly sampled for interviews. The fundamental rationale behind the choice of a household as a unit of analysis is the assumption of sharing of resources among households. The results of this study showed that male headed households are less likely to be poor. Similarly, the likelihood of being poor is smaller in urban areas than in rural areas. Probably to some extent related to this, people living in households mainly engaged in agricultural activities are more likely to be poor, compared to households in manufacturing activities. In all models the most important determinant of poverty status is the
level of education
Effects of physico-chemical parameters on abundance and biomass of phytoplankton in chebara reservoir-Kenya
Get PDFRiver impoundment creates reservoirs of varying sizes that supply water for multiple uses including electric power generation, domestic, agriculture or industry. However, damming of rivers creates an aquatic habitat of slow moving water of varying depths and altogether changing the biotic and physico-chemical status of a waterbody. Chebara reservoir was created to supply water to Eldoret Municipality. Chebara reservoir is located at 36 05 E and 0 22 S and situated within Elgeyo-Marakwet County. A study was conducted on the physico-chemical parameters and the abundance and biomass of phytoplankton in Chebara reservoir from December 2007 to April 2008. Stratified sampling was done every month at six stations distributed over the reservoir; one station at inlet, one station at the outlet, one stationat a minor inlet draining through human settlement, one at
minor inletdrainingthrough farmland and one within the reservoir. Temperature, pH and
ElectricalConductivity were measured in situusing JENWAY® 3405 Electrochemical Analyser.
Secchi depth visibility was measured by vertically immersing a 25cm diameter Secchi disk to
disappearance. Phytoplankton were collected using a 28 m diameter plankton net immersed
vertically below the photic depth. Phytoplankton was identified and enumerated usingSedgwick—Rafter cell underan invertedor microscope, or Olympus®ModelCK2, atamagnificationofX400. Primary production and biomass were determined by chemical analysis of chlorophyll-a concentration and biological oxygen demand (BOD). Nutrientconcentrations were measured spectrophotometrically, while alkalinity was measuredby acidimetric method. Phytoplankton abundance and biomass were related to the physico-chemical conditions of the reservoir. All statistical analyses were performed with STATIGRAPHIC 2.1 Plus and STATISTICA 6.0 procedures. There were no significant differences in the spatial or temporal physico-chemical parameters. The reservoir was homogenously oligotrophic and alkaline with only very slight variations. among dates and samplingstations. The productivity of Chebara reservoir was low (approximately 0.8 µgmillilitre-1) asestimated by chlorophyll a, suggesting oligotrophy. The highest abundance was observed in March and at station 3,while the lowest abundance in April and at station 5. CCA results indicated strong relationships between the various phytoplankton genera and physical and chemical conditions, except for biological oxygen demand which had a weak effect. The study also indicates that phytoplankton growth in the reservoir is more likely to be limited by
availability of P than N. The results obtained from this study can be useful for tracking the effects of changing activities in the drainage basin and the tributaries that contribute water
directly to the reservoir. Calcium concentrations were consistently low, but the high abundance of pyraphytes in this reservoir could suggest a need to monitor management practices in the reservoir catchment that maintain calcium concentrations and populations of pyraphytes low in order to reduce the water treatment costs. This research further recommends that a research be carried out on macro invertebrates in order to accumulate sufficient knowledge which will be useful for watershed best management practices aimed at ensuring long term protection for water supply.
Keywords: Physico-chemical Parameters; Abundance and Biomass; phytoplankton; Chebara
reservoi
Secondary School Students’ Mastery of Integrated Science Process Skills in Siaya County, Kenya
Get PDFThe study investigated secondary school students’ mastery of Integrated Science Process Skills (ISPS) among co-educational schools and the influence of grade level, gender, and school location in Siaya County, Kenya. The study used a causal-comparative design with purposive sampling technique. A 30-item Test of Integrated Science Process Skill (TISPS) developed by Kazeni (2005)
was administered. The instrument assesses the skills of controlling variables, defining operationally, formulating hypotheses, experimenting and interpreting data. The instrument was administered to 429 students, 117, 108, 101 and 103 in grades 9, 10, 11 and 12 respectively drawn from one urban co-educational school (n = 215) and one rural co-educational school (n =
214). The data were analyzed by grade level using one-way ANOVA and by gender and school location using an independent sample t-test. The findings indicated moderate mastery of ISPS and statistically significant grade level differences between grades 9 and 10, 10 and 11, 11 and 12, 9 and 11, 9 and 12, and 10 and 12; Gender differences in favor of boys and school location differences in favor of urban school students in mastery of ISPS. The following conclusions are made with regard to integrated science process skills: Mastery of ISPS increases with grade level; boys have a higher mastery of ISPS than girls; the urban school has a higher mastery of ISPS than the rural school. Implications for practice and further research are herein explicated
Existing Metrics Use in Indexing ICT Integration in University Teaching
Get PDFICT integration by universities teaching professionals is emerging as a major concern, this study demonstrate the need to address the integration problem by encouraging existing metrics use in indexing ICT integration as an ICT governance strategy. Quality of integration depends on quality indexing which also depend on quality of existing metrics and their use. Considering the role that University Information Technology Teaching Professionals’ (UITTPs) continuous improvement indexing can offer, towards autonomic governance of the continuous emerging ICTs in the university teaching, this study examined extent in use of existing ICT integration metrics to index ICT integration by the UITTPs. Six metrics for ICT integration were investigated; time, workshop course content relevance, technical malfunctions, support conditions, support services, and motivation and commitment to student learning and staff professional development metrics. Descriptive survey design was used in which interviews were conducted to UITTPs in three (3) public and three (3) private purposively selected universities in Kenya. The findings were analyzed descriptively and inferentially using Kendall’s correlation of concordance and tested using Chi-square on the extent of concordance and presented with help of frequency tables, figures and percentages. The findings revealed that all the metrics are rarely used for indexing ICT integration (32.8%), and most UITTPs were in discordance on this level of all the six metrics use except for support condition. This implied that the use of metrics for indexing integration has not been formalized across the Kenyan universities. Universities need to be encouraged to identify suitable metrics, formalize them and improve their frequency in use. Secondly, socio based metrics such as content relevance are used more frequently for indexing integration as compared to Technical metrics, socio-technical metrics balance therefore need to be emphasized by the universities management when determining and using metrics for indexing ICT integration
Implications of Social Networking Sites on University Student’s Academic Performance
Get PDFThe study sought to examine fourth year’s university student’s views and opinions on the implications of Social Networking Sites on academic performance, with specific interest being Kisii University. The increased use of SNS has become an international phenomenon in the past several years, especially among youths who have embraced these sites as paramount ways to keep in touch with their peers and share information. A survey was done in the Kisii University by distributing questionnaires to 150 sampled students, including: Faculty of Education; Business and Economics; Information and Technology; Health Sciences; Engineering and Agriculture, in addition, six heads of department were interviewed for data validation. The purpose of the study was to examine the implications of Social Networking Sites on academic performance. The research questions and objectives were: What are the SNS accessed by students on academics? Why do students prefer various SNS? How do these preferred sites influence academic performance? And, to establish the SNS accessed by the University students in academics, to find out why University students prefer various SNS, to examine the implications of SNS on academic performance. Mixed survey design was adopted and conducted in Kisii University involving 150 fourth year students and 6 heads of departments. Quantitative data were generated using questionnaires and presented in tables using frequencies and percentages while qualitative data was generated through interviews and analyzed thematically. The study was guided by technological determinism theory and social learning theory which presumes that technology has effects on society and people learn through their social interaction. The study, reveals
that Social Networking Sites had effects on academic performance
Establishing the Relationship between Public and Private Investment in Kenya
Get PDFThis study undertakes to establish the relationship that exists between public investment and private investment in Kenya during the period of 1971-2011. The study adopts the flexible accelerator model using the time series data for the period in consideration. Variables in the model are real GDP, inflation, interest rate, domestic credit, exchange rate, exports and external debt. The data for these variables was collected from various sources including The Central Bank of Kenya, Economic Surveys, Statistical Abstract and International Financial statistics. Using econometric techniques, the empirical results show domestic credit, real gross domestic product
and exports have positive impact on private investment both in the long run and short run while exchange rate, external debt had both short run and long run negative impact on private investment. This study recommend the use of efficient and modern technologies in the manufacturing and agricultural sector to increase their productivity, more domestic credit to the private sector, debt relief among other policies are suggested to boost private investment in Kenya
Detection of Main Physical Indicators of Mental Status of University Students’ at Onset of Unrest
Get PDFThis paper presents the detection tools of mental status of University students at the onset of unrest. Many factors which includes biological or environmental, influence variation in the mental status of an individual if they are exposed to them. Negative factors are the root cause of mental status at the onset of unrest and this can have specific manifestations. During social unrest, people’s entire way of life is torn apart. In such scenario, there will be clear and predictable observable manifestations which may exhibit themselves physically since the body language is the most reliable sign of internal state of affairs. Several research findings show that University
students’ unrest is a common phenomenon all over the world and that most Universities are focused on the aftermath of students’ unrest. However, studies have not been done on detecting the onset of students’ unrest and then implementing appropriate preventive measures to forestall University students’ unrest. The objective of the study was to identify the main physical indicators of mental status of University students’ at onset of unrest. It was a survey research design which used mixed research method approaches. Data was collected using structured questionnaires. The research population included Security officers, secretaries, of selected public Universities in Kenya. Simple random sampling was used which gave a total sample size of 145 which was
obtained from a target population of 177. The quantitative data collected was analyzed using SPSS programme into frequency counts, percentages, means and independent t-test analysis. From the findings, the main physical indicators of mental status of University students’ at onset of unrest were identified as: Yelling emotional expressions, violent tendencies, hostile attitude manifestations and anger gestures, in that order
Malnutrition and cachexia among cancer out-patients in Nairobi, Kenya
Get PDFCancer is the third leading cause of death in Kenya. However, there is scarce information on the nutritional status of cancer patients to guide in decision making. The present study sought to assess the risk of malnutrition, and factors associated with malnutrition and cachexia, among cancer out-patients, with the aim of informing nutrition programmes for cancer management in Kenya and beyond. This was a facility-based cross-sectional study performed at Kenyatta National Hospital and Texas Cancer Centre in Nairobi, Kenya. The risk of malnutrition was assessed using the Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool (MUST). Diagnoses of malnutrition and cachexia were done using the European Society of Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism (ESPEN) and Fearon criteria, respectively. A total of 512 participants were assessed. Those at risk of malnutrition were 33·1 % (12·5 % at medium risk, 20·6 % at high risk). Prevalence of malnutrition was 13·4 %. The overall weight loss >5 % over 3 months was 18·2 % and low fat-free mass index was 43·1 %. Prevalence of cachexia was 14·1 % compared with 8·5 % obtained using the local criteria. Only 18·6 % participants had received any form of nutrition services. Age was a predictor of malnutrition and cachexia in addition to site of cancer for malnutrition and cigarette smoking for cachexia. The use of the MUST as a screening tool at the first point of care should be explored. The predictive value of current nutrition assessment tools, and the local diagnostic criteria for malnutrition and cachexia should be reassessed to inform the development of appropriate clinical guidelines and
future capacity-building initiatives that will ensure the correct identification of patients at risk for timely care
Determination of Some Selected Heavy Metals in Fish and Water Samples from a Section of Migori River
Get PDFSamples of Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and African catfish (Clarias gariepinus) were collected from a section of Migori River. The moisture content of freeze-dried body of the fish collected from four sites ranged between 62.6% and 86.6% (m/m). An optimal procedure required 12 mL mixture of HNO3, HClO4, and H2O2 (3:2:1, respectively) to mineralize powdered samples in open refluxed digestion vessels: 0.5 g of the fish body. The concentrations of 3 toxic elements Cd, Pb and Hg) in the body of the fish was determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The concentrations varied, respectively; Cd = 0.4 - 1.85, Pb = 0.05 - 0.5 and Hg = 0.07 - 0.096 in mg of element/kg of fish. The concentration of those three heavy metals in water samples was also determined similarly and varied, respectively, as (mg of element/L of water sample); Cd = 0.06 - 0.66, Pb = 0.28 - 0.36 and Hg = 0.5 - 0.74. Application of the statistical t-test on heavy metal elements data has shown that
there was a significant difference between the mean concentrations of Hg in water samples. There is no significant difference between fish as well as water sample from the river.
Keywords: Tilapia Fish, African Cat Fish, Clarias Gariepinus, Oreochromis Niloticus, Toxic Metals, Water Pollution, Migori river
Effect of Light and Temperature through Poly Film Covers on Anthocyanin Content in Rose Cut Flowers
Get PDFQuality is the most important attribute in rose cut flowers for both export and domestic market.
Quality in cut flowers may be defined by many attributes however, among the most important is
colour. A group of pigments commonly known as anthocyanins determine colour in plants.
Anthocyanins play a significant role by ameliorate the effect of high irradiance in plants under
stressful environment. They also play a key role in delaying senescence hence enhancing the cut
flower vase life. Despite the advantages anthocyanins are affected by the preharvest conditions
mainly light and temperature interfering with their stability. An experiment was set up to investigate
the effect of light and temperature through selected coloured poly film covers on rose petal anthocyanin content. The greenhouse structure was covered by poly films of different colours that
were compartmentalized i.e. UV-A clear, IR504 with yellow tint and UV-A 205/N with green tint
replicated three times. Two rose cultivars Red calypso and Furiosa were established and
maintained, upon maturity the flower heads were plucked and oven dried at 60°C to constant
weight. 5 g of the crushed petals was used in anthocyanin extraction. The anthocyanins were
extracted and quantified in comparison with commercial standards using HPLC machine. The data
obtained from the chromatogram as peak areas was subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA)
using SAS statistical package (SAS Inst., Inc., Cary, NC) at P = .05. Where there were treatment
differences, mean separation was done using Tukey’s procedure. Poly films significantly affected
the quantity and quality of anthocyanin accumulation in rose petals. Cyanidin 3-0-glucoside was the
most prevalent anthocyanin across all poly film covers and it was noted to be high under the UV-A
205/N (110.95±8.26 μg _ 5 g–1 DW) and IR504 (109.69±8.26 μg _ 5 g–1 DW) compared to UV-A
clear (84.56± 8.26 μg _ 5 g–1 DW). The quantity of anthocyanins was low under the UV-A clear
poly film that was characterized by high light transmission and day temperature. Combination of
high irradiance and temperature affect the quality and quantity of anthocyanin in rose cut flowers