121 research outputs found
City-regions for cultural nomads: Leveraging transitory rural-urban networks in Nairobi's peripheries through regional agroecological systems; A guide to city-region planning in Kenya
No full textProjected rapid urbanization in African cities is posed to put immense pressure on existing neoliberal urban planning strategies as practised in primary cities and metropolitan regions across Sub-Saharan Africa. This is despite the visible shortcomings of these neoliberal urban development models in delivering the required human development alongside economic growth, specifically for majority of the urban residents in African cities - the urban poor. The political, external agency of cities to global economies at the expense of the internal cultural-economic capacities of local communities continues to propagate inequality, with the urban poor being the most affected by these unjust systems. Continued rural-urban migration, and the growth of the peripheries in urban areas, has seen reduced productivity in traditional integrated agroecological lifestyles and this is unfortunately happening against weakened industrial and manufacturing industries within local urban contexts while propagating a producer-service industry that has fewer opportunities for the rapidly increasing vulnerable populations. The witnessed result of this for the urban peripherals is a growing impermanence of urban lifestyles and the persistence of rural-urban links, as not only escapes from the terror of rigid developmental states mindsets, but also as crucial links for producer-consumer relationships in the splintered regional food system. Unfortunately, the current governance impetus is the propagation of neoliberal models of modernization and gentrification of the urban poor, putting a strain on this crucial cross territorial relationships that sustain urban life. This rural-urban relationships therefore begin to expose the urgent need for reconciling production and consumption landscapes within sustainable city-region governance and planning practices in order to advocate for just urbanisation processes that caters to all populations. This research, critically analyses the symbiotic relationship between the current informal urbanisation structures prevalent in primary cities through the case study of Nairobi, and specifically within the peripherals, and their culturaleconomic identities associated with rural-urban transitory patterns. This investigation makes an attempt to reconnect the future of Kenyan urbanisation to social-cultural production capacities and processes as advocated by critical spatial production and governance literature. Through the main stay of Kenya’s economy - agriculture- and the critical need for sustainable transitions in agricultural and urbanisation systems, we suggest a reconciliation between the emerging social movement of agroecological urbanism at a city-region scale and the adaptiveness of prevalent cultural-economic rural-urban relationships, to suggest a regional, inclusive and adaptive approach to planning practice and governance.Architecture, Urbanism and Building Sciences | Complex Citie
One Health evaluation of brucellosis control in Kazakhstan
No full textBrucellosis is one of the main livestock disease risks in Kazakhstan. It’s been endemic there since 1930, accounting for over 1300 human cases per annum. The economic loss was 45 million USD in 2015 alone. Since 1952, Kazakhstan has implemented various control strategies with little success. One Health approaches have been suggested to tackle brucellosis, however, there is a lack of evidence for best practices to operationalise One Health in the literature, and methods for implementation are not established. The intention of this study was to introduce the One Health approach during the evaluation phase of the policy cycle. A two-day workshop was organized by the authors to familiarize participants with the evaluation methodology. Twenty-one specialists representing veterinary and public health sector, together with researchers, took part in this study. For two weeks following the workshop, first author conducted individual interviews with workshop participants to obtain individual scorings to assess knowledge integration capacity (One Health-ness). The evaluation results show that there is a lack of knowledge about the perceived damage caused by brucellosis to animal owners and other stakeholders. There is insufficient data available about farmers’ practices, interests and motivations, and also data is missing for important transmission processes such as the amount of unsafe dairy consumption. The absence of such data illustrates the extent of the uncertainty to which decision-makers are exposed despite well-elaborated transmission models and supports the importance of co-producing solutions with participatory methods. The results suggest the need for broader involvement of stakeholders. Outputs of this study could help navigate the initial stages of One Health operationalization
My Life So Far as a Young Immigrant
No full textLearning and adjusting to a new culture can often be an exciting and challenging experience. Young people experiencing new cultures hold a unique set of experiences that influence their transition into adulthood. The following essay highlights the experiences of a college freshman who recently immigrated from Kenya. The author tackles issues surrounding adjusting to new cultures and obstacles he has faced and highlights important life lessons that have helped his success
LEADERSHIP STRATEGIES ON PERFOMANCE IN COUNTY GOVERNMENT OF UASIN GISHU, KENYA
No full textAbstract: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of leadership strategies on performance of Uasin Gishu County. The study was guided by the following specific objectives; to evaluate the effect of work environment on performance in Uasin Gishu County. The study was guided by Transformational Leadership Theory. A descriptive survey research design was employed with a target population of 95 respondents consisting of the county executive committee members, county chief officers, county directors, chief principals, and principals. The data collection instrument was questionnaires both closed and open ended. Piloting was done to test the validity and reliability of the data collection instrument. Data collected using questionnaires was entered and analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) software. In addition, inferential statistics that include Analysis of variance, Pearson correlation and multiple regression analysis was used establishing the nature and extent of relationship between variables. To ascertain the relationship between the independent variables and the dependent variable, a regression model was used. In conclusion basing on the findings, the study concluded that working environment has a significant effect on performance of Uasin Gishu county government. The study recommended that the management of the county government of Uasin Gishu should provide their employees a fair and conducive working condition to enable high performance. Due to an ever changing environment, the county government of Uasin Gishu should embrace regular trainings to enhance high and required competencies that facilitates good county government performance. The management of the county government of Uasin Gishu should establish a good relationship with their stakeholders through provision of good reception to enhance customer satisfaction. The study is useful to all the stakeholders in the County governments.
Keywords: Working Environment, Organizational Performance.
Title: LEADERSHIP STRATEGIES ON PERFOMANCE IN COUNTY GOVERNMENT OF UASIN GISHU, KENYA
Author: Jack Wainaina Kariuki, Dr. Elizabeth Nambuswa Makokha, Dr. Duncan Nyaberi
International Journal of Recent Research in Mathematics Computer Science and Information Technology
ISSN 2350-1022
Vol. 9, Issue 1, April 2022 - September 2022
Page No: 37-53
Paper Publications
Website: www.paperpublications.org
Published Date: 22-September-2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7104938
Paper Download Link (Source)
https://www.paperpublications.org/upload/book/LEADERSHIP%20STRATEGIES%20ON%20PERFOMANCE-22092022-3.pdfInternational Journal of Recent Research in Mathematics Computer Science and Information Technology, ISSN 2350-1022, Paper Publications, Website: www.paperpublications.or
Crime in Thika 1968-1977
No full textDespite the paucity of data available
regarding crime rates in developing countries, and
the variations in the adequacy of the statistics, one
finds that the generalization that criminality is ,
rapidly increasing in developing countries can be
substantiated. 'And Kenya, as a developing country,
seems to adhere to this pattern.Studies of crime
in Kenya are therefore needed if one is to try to
prevent an escalation of criminal activity as Kenya
continues to develop economically. The author chose to
study crime in Thika since Thika is a growth centre
and as such has expanded at a considerable rate in
the last ten years, and the population growth is expected
to continue in this direction - at around 11.1% per year.
This study gives the results of a questionnaire
applied to 150 Thika residents, and findings from the
police summaries for 1968-1977; in addition data gathered
from the police registers for this period is analysed.
Major hypotheses which were tested were:
(1) Men have committed relatively more crimes
than women;
(2) The majority of crimes are committed by persons
between the ages 20-35 years.
Testing of the hypotheses indicated that most crimes
in Thika are committed by men aged 20-35 years.The author found that the research could
have been carried out more effectively if those recording
the details of the accused person in the police registers
could be more accurate in their descriptions of age, place
of residence and occupation of the accused person.
The major recommendations the author wishes to
make involve the design of houses; the patrolling of certain
areas at night by police; increase~ co-operation amongst
members of a community as a result of improved social
facilities. Finally ,the author feels that a possible long
term solution to Thika's criminal activity is to encourage
the development of tne informal secto
Application of Therapeutic Jurisprudence: A Different Approach to Punishment in Kenya
No full textA critical role of the State is the regulation of crime by maintaining law and order and, at the same time, punishing crime. This paper seeks to address the retrogressive way crime is punished in Kenya. The author proposes that this can be rectified through the application of the doctrines of therapeutic jurisprudence (TJ), a theory first propounded by David Wexler when he tried to create a solution to the treatment of mental health victims in criminal courts. This paper takes his theories and applies them to the Kenyan context. In addressing these issues, this paper shall first look at the existing theories behind punishment, with focus on incarceration as the primary form of punishment, and highlight their flaws. It shall then look at TJ and explain how it can be infused into the Kenyan legal system. In doing so, the paper argues, the effectiveness of punishment can be greatly increased
Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci
No full textImproving the speed of outbreak detection and reporting at the community level are critical in managing the threat of emerging infectious diseases, many of which are zoonotic. The widespread use of mobile phones, including in rural areas, constitutes a potentially effective tool for real-time surveillance of infectious diseases. Using longitudinal data from a disease surveillance system implemented in 1500 households in rural Kenya, we test the effectiveness of mobile phone animal syndromic surveillance by comparing it with routine household animal health surveys, determine the individual and household correlates of its use and examine the broader implications for surveillance of zoonotic diseases. A total of 20 340 animal and death events were reported from the community through the two surveillance systems, half of which were confirmed as valid disease events. The probability of an event being valid was 2.1 times greater for the phone-based system, compared with the household visits. Illness events were 15 times (95% CI 12.8, 17.1) more likely to be reported through the phone system compared to routine household visits, but not death events (OR 0.1 (95% CI 0.09, 0.11)). Disease syndromes with severe presentations were more likely to be reported through the phone system. While controlling for herd and flock sizes owned, phone ownership was not a determinant of using the phone-based surveillance system, but the lack of a formal education, and having additional sources of income besides farming were associated with decreased likelihood of reporting through the phone system. Our study suggests that a phone-based surveillance system will be effective at detecting outbreaks of diseases such as Rift Valley fever that present with severe clinical signs in animal populations, but in the absence of additional reporting incentives, it may miss early outbreaks of diseases such as avian influenza that present primarily with mortality. This article is part of the theme issue 'Dynamic and integrative approaches to understanding pathogen spillover'.20192019-08-12T00:00:00Z110330/Z/15/Z/WT_/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom31401960PMC67113151063
Household socioeconomic position and infectious disease risk in rural Kenya
No full textHousehold socioeconomic position and infectious disease risk in rural Kenya
de Glanville W.A. PhD1,2,#, Thomas L.F. PhD 1,2, Cook E.A.J. PhD 1,2, Bronsvoort B.M. PhD 3,4, Wamae N.C. PhD 6, Kariuki S. PhD 7, Fèvre E.M. PhD 2,8*
1Centre for Immunity, Infection and Evolution, Institute for Immunology and Infection Research, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Ashworth Laboratories, West Mains Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3JT, UK
2 International Livestock Research Institute, Old Naivasha Road, PO BOX 30709, 00100-Nairobi, Kenya
3 The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Roslin, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, UK
4 Roslin Institute, The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Roslin, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, UK
6 School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, United States International Research University, PO Box 14634-00800, Nairobi, Kenya
7 Centre for Microbiology Research, Kenya Medical Research Institute, PO Box 19464-00200, Nairobi, Kenya
8 Institute of Infection and Global Health, University of Liverpool, Leahurst Campus, Neston, CH64 7TE, UK
*Corresponding author
# Current address: Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom, G12 8QQ.
Background
Household socioeconomic position (SEP) has been repeatedly shown to predict individual infectious disease risk, yet few studies have quantified this association for the full range of pathogens that are typically endemic in low income settings. This cross-sectional study assesses the impact of SEP on a range of infectious agents with diverse transmission routes within a single community in western Kenya.
Methods
Information on productive and material household assets, household resources, and access to services was collected and combined to derive a single index of SEP. The relationship between household SEP and individual infection with Plasmodium falciparum, hookworm (Ancylostoma duodenale and/or Necator americanus), Entamoeba histolytica/dispar, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and HIV was assessed using multivariable logistic regression. The relationship between co-infections with hookworm, P. falciparum and E. histolytica/dispar and SEP was assessed using multinomial logistic regression.
Findings
Individuals in households with the lowest SEP were at greatest risk of infection with P. falciparum, hookworm and E. histolytica/dispar, as well as co-infection with each pathogen. Infection with M. tuberculosis, by contrast, was most likely in individuals living in households with the highest SEP. There was no evidence of a relationship between individual HIV infection and household SEP.
Interpretation
A household socioeconomic gradient exists in this predominantly poor, rural farming community. This gradient significantly impacts upon individual infectious disease risk, but the relationship between household SEP and infection is not consistent for all pathogens.
Funding
Wellcome Trust, BBSRC, MRC and CGIAR Research Program on Agriculture for Nutrition and Healt
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