Case studies of Kenyan digital villages with a focus on women and girls

The present article refers to a case study on the Kenyan Government’s Digital Villages Project (DVP). The Kenyan Government, together with external stakeholders and private contractors, is increasing their ICT investments to provide the entire population with information and communication regardless of demographic factors. In the Kenyan context, digital villages are what normally other countries refer to as telecentres, i.e. a centre that provides services with regard to Internet and telecommunication. In this case, the digital villages also offer education, learning, and e-Government. The present study wants to learn whether DVP is accessible, and appropriate to women and girls in resource-poor environments and, thus, successful. The following questions guided the study: 1. Who are the users of Pasha Centres? 2. How and for what purposes are Pasha Centres used? 3. In what way do Pasha Centres consider local needs (e.g. education, literacy, job, and diversity)? 4. What do users and managers do to encourage female users? The study is built upon observations and interviews. The results show that male users generally believe that women have a lack of knowledge and understanding of ICT. The results also show that what is said by the government is not fully implemented at the local levels. The authors believe, despite this, that DVP has the potential to serve the population in vulnerable areas and that the government should continue focusing on similar projects. Keywords: digital village, gender, ICT-service, Kenya, lifelong learning, resource-poor environmen

Servitization of Manufacturing companies in emerging markets

Securing a competitive advantage for manufacturing companies in economies with fierce rivalry has increasing become difficult. With financial success, company growth and differentiation being objectives manufacturers are continuously striving to achieve it has becoming more beneficial to manufacturer to servitize. Servitization is the process through which manufacturers integrate services to product offering as a means of adding value to the offerings, differentiate from the competitors or generate additional revenue. Current literature has predominantly focused on western world manufactures in developed markets with little insight into the process in emerging markets such as that of Kenya as used in this study. This study aimsto examine the role of servitization in the pursuit of differentiation and achieving competitive advantage for manufacturing firms in emerging economies therefore, addressing this gap in current literature. The study utilises two key frameworks which are servitization theory and organizational culture theory addressing the existing literature and its closely related concepts. Thesestwo frameworks are chosen as they serve as the basis for studying manufacturing companies undergoing a service transition. A theoretical lens is created based on the synthesis of these two frameworks from which the developed servitization capabilities can be drawn and providing a simple view of the empirical results. The empirical section of this study includes the analysis of three unnamed manufacturing company. Primary data is collected through semi structured interviews with the managers from the case companies, the data is then analysed using context analysis. The study finds several differences in the motivations, challenges, and effects of servitization with conceptual similarities between the manufacturing companies in developed markets i.e., Europe and north America with emerging markets i.e., Sub Saharan Africa and southeast Asia. The level of servitization in Kenya is also highlighted given the scope of the data collected in the study with varying levels of servitization capabilities noted amongst different industries and the viability of ser

The adoption of low-cost low head drip irrigation in small-scale farms in Kenya

Population growth and development will increase the demands on water resources in Africa, and hence there is a need for agriculture to use water efficiently. Drip irrigation is widely promoted for water saving at the farm level. Moreover, it is easily adaptable to small-scale farming common in Africa. The use of low-cost drip irrigation, especially the low-cost medium head (LCMH) drip system, is growing rapidly in some Asian countries. However, the uptake of low-cost drip irrigation in general has been slow in Kenya, which has scarce water for irrigation. Using the theory of the adoption and diffusion of innovation, this research aimed to identify the factors affecting the rate of adoption and continued use of low-cost low head (LCLH) drip irrigation in Kenya. Following a review of experiences of low-cost drip irrigation from India and sub-Saharan Africa, primary information was obtained using informal interviews in a two-phase survey. A total of eighty-six respondents were interviewed in the two phases. Phase 1 examined the factors influencing the adoption of LCLH drip irrigation. The key respondents in phase 1 were irrigation farmers (drip and non-drip), government officials, irrigation industry representatives, and staff of non¬governmental organisations (NGOs). Phase 2 examined the factors affecting discontinuation of LCLH drip irrigation. In phase 2 only LCLH drip irrigation farmers and those who had discontinued using it were interviewed While the low-cost medium head drip irrigation was the dominant irrigation in India, the low-cost low head drip irrigation, gravity fed and in a kit form, was found to be the most common system on smallholder farms in Kenya. The results showed that for the rate of appropriate low-cost drip irrigation uptake to increase in Kenya, it was important to remove political and institutional inhibiting factors dominant during the implementation stages of the innovation-decision process. It was necessary for farmers to have a need to save irrigation water, reliable irrigation water resources, effective water user organisations, efficient marketing facilities, efficient technical support services, relevant cultural background, and good security for the kit. The LCLH drip irrigation kit appeared to have more maintenance problems than the alternative irrigation methods. Furthermore, government policies and extension services as well as irrigation industry efforts appeared limited. It appeared that the technology would most likely be adopted where farmers have a reliable but limited (in volume) water supply. In some situations, the LCLH drip technology, and particularly the smaller (bucket) kits, did not appear to be appropriate and should not be promoted. For other conditions, recommendations were made for helping to overcome the problems identified in the study. The Rogers innovation-decision model was shown to lack sufficient consideration of external factors. A revised model was proposed to suit the conditions of small-scale irrigation technology adoption in less developed countries.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Assessing performance of small-scale pumped irrigation systems in Sub-Saharan Africa: evidence from a systematic review

Small-scale irrigation (SSI) has significant potential to increase crop productivity in Sub Saharan Africa (SSA). Pumped irrigation systems are one of the technologies increasingly being used by smallholder farmers. The aim of this study was to systematically review evidence on the performance of SSI pumped systems, including motorized, treadle, rope and washer, solar and wind pumps. The study revealed a lack of standardization and use of a wide range of indicators to assess performance. Most evidence related to motorized pumps, these studies confirmed mixed levels of performance; studies relating to other types of pumped system mostly reported a positive impact, although the method of assessment used was critical. Studies reporting positive impacts tended to be those that used socio-economic based factors such as yield and profitability, whereas studies reporting mixed performance tended to be those that relied more on technically based indicators such as pumping and irrigation system efficiency. The analysis highlights the sensitivity of interpreting findings from different studies, and how caution should be exercised when comparing performance within and between different types of irrigation system. The implications for supporting policy development and identifying future research gaps are discussed

The adoption of low-cost low head drip irrigation in small-scale farms in Kenya

Population growth and development will increase the demands on water resources in Africa, and hence there is a need for agriculture to use water efficiently. Drip irrigation is widely promoted for water saving at the farm level. Moreover, it is easily adaptable to small-scale farming common in Africa. The use of low-cost drip irrigation, especially the low-cost medium head (LCMH) drip system, is growing rapidly in some Asian countries. However, the uptake of low-cost drip irrigation in general has been slow in Kenya, which has scarce water for irrigation. Using the theory of the adoption and diffusion of innovation, this research aimed to identify the factors affecting the rate of adoption and continued use of low-cost low head (LCLH) drip irrigation in Kenya. Following a review of experiences of low-cost drip irrigation from India and sub-Saharan Africa, primary information was obtained using informal interviews in a two-phase survey. A total of eighty-six respondents were interviewed in the two phases. Phase 1 examined the factors influencing the adoption of LCLH drip irrigation. The key respondents in phase 1 were irrigation farmers (drip and non-drip), government officials, irrigation industry representatives, and staff of non¬governmental organisations (NGOs). Phase 2 examined the factors affecting discontinuation of LCLH drip irrigation. In phase 2 only LCLH drip irrigation farmers and those who had discontinued using it were interviewed While the low-cost medium head drip irrigation was the dominant irrigation in India, the low-cost low head drip irrigation, gravity fed and in a kit form, was found to be the most common system on smallholder farms in Kenya. The results showed that for the rate of appropriate low-cost drip irrigation uptake to increase in Kenya, it was important to remove political and institutional inhibiting factors dominant during the implementation stages of the innovation-decision process. It was necessary for farmers to have a need to save irrigation water, reliable irrigation water resources, effective water user organisations, efficient marketing facilities, efficient technical support services, relevant cultural background, and good security for the kit. The LCLH drip irrigation kit appeared to have more maintenance problems than the alternative irrigation methods. Furthermore, government policies and extension services as well as irrigation industry efforts appeared limited. It appeared that the technology would most likely be adopted where farmers have a reliable but limited (in volume) water supply.In some situations, the LCLH drip technology, and particularly the smaller (bucket) kits, did not appear to be appropriate and should not be promoted. For other conditions, recommendations were made for helping to overcome the problems identified in the study.The Rogers innovation-decision model was shown to lack sufficient consideration of external factors. A revised model was proposed to suit the conditions of small-scale irrigation technology adoption in less developed countries

The genetics of barley (Hordeum vulgare) salinity tolerance during germination and the instantaneous seedling endurance

Salinity limits crop production through osmotic and ionic stress in combination with oxidative strain and nutrient imbalance. Osmotic tolerance, ionic exclusion, and tissue tolerance are some of the adaptive mechanisms in plants when exposed to salinity stress. These physiological adaptive mechanisms are quantitative in nature and are manifested genetically by affecting ~ 8% of genes expression. Barley, the fourth most important cereal crop in the world, is relatively salinity tolerant. However, salinity causes a significant reduction in its growth and grain yield. Adaptation to salinity in barley is varied with growth stage where germination and early growth stages are the most sensitive. This is because excessive salt accumulation in the rhizosphere affects the germinating seed and the subsequent developmental processes including revitalization of plants development after exposure to salinity stress during the sprouting stage. Studies are yet to close the lack of information between the germination and/or seedling stage salinity tolerance, and the genotypic differences in developing young plants regeneration after exposure to salinity stress. The current study explored the genetics of salinity tolerance during the germination stage and the seedling survival in barley after germination under salinity stress (NaCl). To detect the genetic loci and candidate genes responsible for salinity tolerance in barley during germination and early growth stages, four barley populations comprising of a diversity panel of 350 accessions from across the globe, two doubled haploid (DH) populations (CM72/Gairdner and Skiff/CM72), and a back-cross population of CM72/Gairdner/*Spartacus CL were used for phenotyping and mapping. These germplasm sets were exposed to different levels of salinity stress (75, 90, 120 AND 150 mM NaCl) along with a control treatment (deionized water) and various phenotypic traits recorded at germination and early seedling stages. Genome-Wide Association (GWAS) analysis was conducted on a diversity panel of 350 accessions using ~24,000 genetic markers, where 19 Quantitative Traits Nucleotides (QTNs) were detected across all 7 barley chromosomes and 4 genes predicted for salinity tolerance at germination. A study with CM72/Gairdner DH population mapped six Quantitative Traits Loci (QTLs) on chromosomes 1H, 3H and 4H for traits associated with seedling survival under salinity stress. Three QTLs on 1H (1) and 3H (2) with closely linked significant markers that were detected in more than one salinity survival traits were proposed as the regions with highest probability of having candidate genes. To narrow down the location of genetic regions associated with salinity tolerance at germination on chromosome 2H, a major QTL was fine–mapped using CM72/Gairdner and Skiff/CM72 DH populations, F2 and F3 generations of CM72/Gairdner/*Spartacus CL to a region of ~ 0.341 Mb and designed 2 diagnostic markers. Further, this study reported two Receptor-like protein kinase 4 as the candidate genes for enhanced germination under salinity stress. The diversity of seven reported genes in barley was explored further in 40 different species where three of them; dehydration-responsive element-binding (DREB) protein, somatic embryogenesis receptor-like kinase and aquaporin genes, were found to be the most varied. While all three gene families show great diversity in most plant species, the DREB gene family was more diverse in barley than in wheat and rice. Sixty-five barley homolog genes were identified from salinity tolerance genes characterized in Arabidopsis, maize, rice, soybean, and wheat. Besides, the homologs have been reported to express themselves in first three barley’s developmental stages. The results of this study provide new genetic resources and information for further functional characterization of the identified candidate genes and to improve salinity tolerance at germination and early seedling stage via genomic and marker-assisted selection (MAS) in barley. The findings in this thesis together with other existing information will facilitate breeding and release of new high yielding barley varieties that can grow in extreme environment including saline soils of the world

Challenges Faced by Finnish SME´s in international growth the benefits from sector organization: Finnish Water Forum

Finnish small and medium sized enterprises seeking international growth face multiple challenges whilst undertaking this process. This research material seeks to identify these challenges and explores a possible solution to remedy them. The literary works serving as a foundation for this research include the Uppsala internationalization process model, the network theory, the international entre-preneurship theory and the five capabilities model. These works enable us to un-derstand internationalization and how to go about it. Whilst enabling the identi-fication of challenges that may be incurred throughout the process. Results from the study identify the main challenges of the small medium sized enterprises to be lack of enough resources; financial, human, physical and knowledge. These challenges where however mitigated when the SMEs’ joined a sector organization as they sought to educate, assist members in their endeavors and represent their view to various stakeholders

Critical success factors for implementation of green IT in developing countries: : The case of E-waste in Kenya

As much as going green is a very popular topic of discussion and much emphasis is put on the subject, not all areas, topics and locations are explored. Some continents have effectively, strategically and efficiently addressed the problem while others are still fighting to address it. We undertook this research to find out what it takes to ensure that the e-waste problem is solved in a developing country. The purpose of the study was to investigate what factors contributed at a financial, technological and environmental level to the prosperity of the e-waste project in Kenya. The financial factor attempts to investigate if any economic value is achieved. The technological factor investigates if there is any new technology added to the recycled and the technology used to breakdown the e-waste.The environmental factor deals with how the environment is affected by e-waste. To achieve this, a questionnaire, interviews and reports were used to collect data. The semi-structured approach of the interviews employed allowed us to achieve an in-depth approach of collecting data. This in turn helped us collect many different views of the subject. Various theories where used in addition to the data collected so as to give an interpretation and create scenarios of various outcomes should the models be applied. The translation of this data led to results showing that not all the three factors have to be in place to ensure success. Depending on which theory was applied some factors become more attainable than others. However all three factors are achievable and attainable when dealing with green IT. It became apparent that other factors like sensitization, government involvement and extended producer responsibility apart from the three did also have a direct impact on the result