Mushrooming of Middle Level Tourism and Hospitality Training Colleges and Quality of Higher Education: A Case Study of Eldoret Town-Kenya

Education is a set of processes designed to transmit knowledge, skills and values to develop individual mental ability. In this regard, it is viewed as the gateway to social and economic advancement. As a strategy to achieve this social and economic development, the Kenyan government introduced the free primary education that saw the primary and secondary schools flooding with students. As a result, form four leavers who can neither be admitted in the public universities nor afford to privately sponsor themselves in either private or public universities have been on the increase. This scenario has prompted them to join affordable middle level colleges. With the ever increasing number of high school leavers, entrepreneurs have set to invest in the education sector by establishing numerous colleges across the country and Eldoret town is no exception.  Uncontrolled increase in the number of middle level colleges and a shortage of qualified lecturers is undermining the quality of higher education in Kenya. As a result, this study aims at investigating the impact of these colleges on the quality of education. As a concern, the government through its various bodies in charge of education should take swift measures to ensure that; while it provides adequate education for its citizens, this trend does not compromise the quality of education offered. Therefore, throughout the process of educational development and technology, the major element that should be considered is the quality of education standards. Keywords: Eldoret, Hospitality, Training, Tourism, Qualit

Determining the Potential of Universities as Holiday Destinations: A Case Study of Chepkoilel University College, Kenya

As a response to government spending cuts in higher education, institutions of higher education have sought ways of diversifying their sources of income. This has made institutions of higher learning attract holidaymakers to exploit under-utilized campus buildings during student vacations. This is a well-established practice in the western world, United Kingdom, for example. This qualitative research was conducted in Chepkoilel University College to determine how well campus-based tourism (CBT) enterprise is known among the Chepkoilelian fraternity. Descriptive survey research design was adopted, and semi-structured interviews and focus- group discussions were used to collect data. Sixty (60) respondents were selected using stratified random sampling, of strata including students, academic, subordinate and administrative staff. Data was analyzed thematically where related topics were categorized into major themes identified through developing a coding system based on collected data, classifying major topics covered, re-reading the text and highlighting key quotations and finally placing the coded materials under the major themes identified. Apart from the need to determine the popularity of CBT, the study also sought to find out whether the University College has the potential for the development of this form of tourism. An opinion on the appropriateness of CBT enterprise was also examined. From the findings, it became evident that there are diverse attractions which can enhance the promotion of tourism such as the annual agricultural business fair, the annual cross-country and the farming activities as key attractions drawing visitors to the campus. If the information contained in this paper is anything to go by, then it can be argued that universities need not be wholly dependent on governments and donor agencies for research funding, instead they should set about floating small enterprises to help generate finances for their research projects, more particularly, utilizing otherwise idle resources during long vacations to provide additional income. The study provides crucial information that might be useful to decision makers in the Kenyan tourism industry, as well as institutions of higher education to develop alternative ways of generating income to support their mainstream educational activities. Keywords: Campus-Based Tourism (CBT); Holiday, Destinatio

Community Conservation Paradigm: The Case Studies of Mwaluganje Elephant Sanctuary and lLNgwesi Community Conservancy in Kenya

Conservation of biodiversity outside designated protected areas in Kenya, in the 21st century, is becoming increasingly difficult due to declining available land space, increasing human population, alienation of local people, lack of socio- economic incentives for conservation and lack of suitable models to be adopted. Although, the traditional national park model, led to the establishment of the key Kenyan parks and reserves, it cannot be adopted by any further study as it mainly emphasizes the wilderness and its biological resources, and places less emphases on expertise, needs and development of local communities (Wishitemi, 2008:103). Hence, the current network of protected areas is under many threats, unpopular and resented by local communities. As a result, the concept of community participation in tourism and other development initiatives has gained support since the 1980’s. Biodiversity resources outside Kenyan parks and reserves are under dangers of extermination unless communities are brought back to the center of conservation and appropriate community conservation areas outside this current network of Protected Areas are explored. Moreover, these community conservation areas must incorporate local wishes and succeed in working in lived landscapes that present a meeting place for human needs and conservation of local resources, especially in wildlife dispersal areas and pastoral communities of Kenya. Of necessity, community conservation initiatives must originate and be run by local people, and these projects should generate sustainable livelihoods, while securing dependable, sustained access to essential natural resources. Using the case study of Mwaluganje elephant sanctuary and Ilngwesi community conservancy, this study examines the efficacy of community conservation. Specifically, the study assesses how the development of community conservancies have contributed to environmental conservation and improved livelihoods of the local community. Finally, the paper discusses the development and future prospects of community conservation in Kenya. Keywords: Community, Conservation, Ilngwesi, Mwaluganje, Paradigm, Sanctuar

The Role of Youth Enterprise Development Fund (YEDF) in Job Creation: A Case of Dagoretti Constituency, Nairobi County, Kenya

Youth unemployment in Kenya is a serious development issue. The government conceived the Youth Enterprise Development Fund (YEDF) in June 2006 as a strategic move towards arresting the high rate of unemployment among the youth in the country. The overall objective of this study therefore was to investigate the role of the YEDF in job creation: A Case of Dagoretti Constituency, Nairobi County. The study population consisted of beneficiary youth groups at Dagoretti Constituency and YEDF management officials at the head office. The study adopted a descriptive survey design. To achieve this, two sets of questionnaires and one interview schedule were used to get information. Prior to data collection, authorization was sought from National Council of Science and Technology (NCST). The target population was 80 respondents and due to the small sample size, the researcher carried out a census. Out of the target population of 80 respondents, 70 responded translating to a response rate of 87.5%. Data collected was analyzed using Statistical Program for Social Sciences (SPSS) and presented in the form of frequency tables, pie charts and bar charts. The research findings showed that majority of the respondents (85%) felt that YEDF has helped reduce youth unemployment. A significant percentage of respondents (82%) strongly agreed that lack of business and management skills is the greatest challenge entrepreneurs are facing and needed entrepreneurship training. The youth groups also suggest that the Fund should have a variety of structures to disburse funds also is should give loans to individuals since not all of them are in youth groups. They felt that YEDF should be exposed them capacity building programmes and life skills. Further it was found that the interest rate and repayment terms offered by YEDF were found to be the most appealing factor to beneficiaries. The youth groups suggested that the fund have more collaborations and strategic partnerships with financial intermediaries at grassroots to facilitate disbursement of funds to youth groups at the constituency. The main study recommendations include; YEDF funds be increased by the government and other financiers. For YEDF to be more effective in empowering the young entrepreneurs in the informal sector, more emphasis should be put in giving more training in entrepreneurship skills to youth before and after accessing the loan and credit should be given primarily for enterprise expansion, rather than start-ups.Keywords: Youth enterprise Development Fund, Job Creation in Keny

Influence of Schools’ Management Financial Preparedness on the Implementation of Competence Based Curriculum in Public Primary Schools in Kirinyaga West Sub-county, Kirinyaga County, Kenya

The competency-based curriculum (CBC) is presently being implemented in public primary schools in Kenya. Yet, empirical evidence indicates that schools’ management faces a lot of challenges, hence making it very difficult for the implementation of the new programme. The study sought to explore the influence of schools’ management financial preparedness on implementation of CBC in Kirinyaga west subcounty, Kirinyaga County, Kenya. The study was anchored on Curriculum Implementation Theory, Theory of Organizational Readiness for Change, and Kurt Lewin Change Management Model. The study adopted mixed method approach, which allowed concurrent triangulation of data where both quantitative and qualitative methodologies were used. Target population comprised 68 headteachers, 1,020 teachers, 15, 500 CBC pupils and 4 sub-county education officials totaling to 16,592 respondents. Yamane Formula was used to sample 399 respondents that were identified using purposive and stratified random sampling techniques. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect quantitative data from teachers whereas an interview guide was used to collect qualitative data from head teachers and subcounty education official. Quantitative data was organized and processed descriptively and inferentially using SPSS (version 23) and presented using frequency tables. Linear regression was carried out under inferential statistics. Qualitative data was analyzed using thematic content analysis technique and presented using narratives. All research protocols were observed throughout the study, including obtaining all relevant authorizations and observing respect for the participants. The study established that schools’ financial preparedness has significant influence on the implementation of the CBC in public primary schools in Kenya. The study recommended that there is need for the government to provide enough financial resources for implementation of the CBC. School managers should be trained on how to mobilize financial resources to complement government efforts

Value of training on motivation among health workers in Narok County, Kenya

Introduction: Training, as an additive human resources intervention is decisive to organizational performance. Employees require constant update of formal and informal knowledge alongside positive attitudes that have been defined as necessary in motivation leading to effectiveness in performance hence workplace training is tied to achieving organizational aims and objectives. The objective of this study was to determine the influence of training on motivation among health workers in Narok County, Kenya. Methods: A cross-sectional study utilizing a self administered questionnaire, targeting 237 health workers and 21 health managers was used. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 21 using descriptive statistics. Factor analysis was done on the training perception in relation to motivation. Results: Majority of the respondents rated their motivation between 7 and 9 in the current health facility (35.4%), Sub-county (33.8%) and County (32.9%) with the median motivation level of 5. Majority of health workers 194 (81.9%) had received a form of training, of whom 191 (98.5%) indicated that on-job training was relevant to their tasks and that it motivated 192 (99.0%) of them to perform better due to coining skills to motivation. Training significantly predicted general motivation (pvalue = 0.013), job satisfaction (p-value = .001), intrinsic job satisfaction (p-value = .001) and organisational commitment (p-value <.001). Conclusion: The researchers concluded that there is a relationship between training and motivated health workforce in Narok County and recommended strengthening of current training initiatives by ensuring trainings are more regular and involvement of health workers in discussing their career development prospects.Pan African Medical Journal 2016; 2

Detection of the spotted wing drosophila, Drosophila suzukii, in continental sub-Saharan Africa

The spotted wing drosophila, Drosophila suzukii Matsumura, is an insect pest of soft-skinned fruit, native to Eastern Asia. Since 2008, a world-wide dispersal of D. suzukii is seen, characterized by the establishment of the pest in many Asian, American and European countries. While the potential for invasion of continental Africa by D. suzukii has been predicted, its presence has only been shown for Morocco in Northern Africa. Knowledge about a possible establishment in other parts of the continent is needed as a basis for pest management. In 2019, we carried out a first survey in three counties in Kenya to monitor for the presence of D. suzukii using traps baited with a blend of apple cider vinegar and red wine. A total of 389 D. suzukii flies were captured in a fruit farm at Nakuru county, with more female flies being trapped than males. We confirmed the morphological identification of D. suzukii using DNA barcoding. In 2020, we performed a follow-up survey at 14 locations in six counties to delimit the distribution of D. suzukii in the main berry growing zones in Kenya. The survey indicated that so far D. suzukii is restricted to Nakuru county where it was initially detected. This is the first study to provide empirical evidence of D. suzukii in continental sub-Saharan Africa, confirming that the pest is expanding its geographic range intercontinentally. Given the high dispersal potential of D. suzukii, a concerted effort to develop management strategies is a necessity for containment of the pest

Prioritization of invasive alien species with the potential to threaten agriculture and biodiversity in Kenya through horizon scanning

Invasive alien species (IAS) rank among the most significant drivers of species extinction and ecosystem degradation resulting in significant impacts on socio-economic development. The recent exponential spread of IAS in most of Africa is attributed to poor border biosecurity due to porous borders that have failed to prevent initial introductions. In addition, countries lack adequate information about potential invasions and have limited capacity to reduce the risk of invasions. Horizon scanning is an approach that prioritises the risks of potential IAS through rapid assessments. A group of 28 subject matter experts used an adapted methodology to assess 1700 potential IAS on a 5-point scale for the likelihood of entry and establishment, potential socio-economic impact, and impact on biodiversity. The individual scores were combined to rank the species according to their overall potential risk for the country. Confidence in individual and overall scores was recorded on a 3-point scale. This resulted in a priority list of 120 potential IAS (70 arthropods, 9 nematodes, 15 bacteria, 19 fungi/chromist, 1 viroid, and 6 viruses). Options for risk mitigation such as full pest risk analysis and detection surveys were suggested for prioritised species while species for which no immediate action was suggested, were added to the plant health risk register and a recommendation was made to regularly monitor the change in risk. By prioritising risks, horizon scanning guides resource allocation to interventions that are most likely to reduce risk and is very useful to National Plant Protection Organisations and other relevant stakeholders