Factors Affecting the Performance of Pastoral Cooperatives in Northern Kenya: A Case Study of Livestock Based Cooperative Societies in Isiolo County, Kenya

Pastoralist is people who thrive on keeping livestock in the arid and semi-arid areas in Kenya that constitute 89% of the land mass. The climate change effect has pushed pastoralist to settle and diversify their income base by engaging in livestock and livestock product for their livelihood support by the formation of cooperatives. There are lots of studies done on the deposit-taking cooperative with slight effort on the non-deposit cooperative society's performance. The research sought to establish factors affecting the performance of the pastoral cooperative movement in Northern Kenya. The study adopted the use of a questionnaire as the research instrument and descriptive research design. The questionnaire was pre-tested for validity and reliability. The data collected were edited and coded before analysis to check for consistency and completeness. Statistical package for social sciences (SPSS version 16) and MS Excel (2013) was adopted for analysis. A total of 187 respondents were sampled with a response rate of 81 percent returned the questionnaires. Based on the findings, the researcher found out that organizational systems and corporate governance are not well understood by the members, boards and clients. The study recommends for the triangulation with other non-deposit taking societies performance and review of the policies. Keywords: Cooperative, livestock, livelihood, pastoralis

Schistosoma Mansoni Infections Occurring in School Children in a Non-Endemic Area as a Result of Associated Activities in a Neighboring Endemic Area in Kenya

Schistosomiasis, a chronic parasitic disease is caused by a blood fluke (Schistosoma). 200 million people are infected worldwide, 85% in sub-Saharan Africa. In Kenya coastal region and irrigation schemes are endemic. Mwea irrigation scheme is endemic with 47% prevalence. Close proximity of Kagio area to the irrigation scheme offers labor opportunities to the population including school children posing a transmission threat. This study investigated Schistosoma mansoni infections among school children aged 8-15 years. Kagio and Kang’aru schools (Kagio area) and Kandongu (Mwea irrigation scheme) were selected. 322 pupils were tested for the presence of S. mansoni eggs by direct wet smears and Karto Katz. 263 questionnaires were administered to pupils from Kagio and Kang’aru schools. Data was analysed using Chi square and t-test statistics. Results showed that 7.2% of pupils from Kagio area had Schistosoma mansoni compared to 22% sampled from Mwea irrigation scheme. Mean number of eggs was 56 epg and 104 epg for the pupils who had light infection and those with moderate infection respectively. No pupils had heavy infestation. Pupils from Kagio area who worked in the farms in Mwea irrigation scheme were more prone to infection. 7.9% of those infected worked in rice paddies compared to 4% of infected pupils who did not. There was a significant relationship between labor migration and occurrence of Schistosoma mansoni infection among school children in Kagio area (x2=1.267; df=1; P=0.2604). There was no significant difference in infection rates between pupils from Kagio and Mwea areas (t=5.33, cl=95%, df=1, P=0.118). Schistosoma mansoni was present in both endemic and non-endemic areas. Labor migration was a significant transmission risk factor. The results indicate a need for the policymakers to institute programs that are designed to eliminate or minimize child labor migration from non-endemic to endemic areas as a way of preventing spread of Schistosoma mansoni, regular testing and treatment of the entire population and extend control interventions to neighboring non endemic area

Level of Advertisement by Commercial Banks on Utilisation of International Trade Finance Products by Business Customers in Kenya.

The aim of this study was to assess the role played by commercial banks in offering international trade finance products to businesses including Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Kenya. The objective was to determine the level of Advertisement by Commercial Banks on utilisation of International Trade finance products by business customers in Kenya to serve the SMEs. A sample of 12 commercial banks was targeted and picked through a stratified random sampling method. A survey was done and data collected through questionnaires delivered through email which achieved a 100% response rate. The respondents were the branch managers, the business bankers and customer service staff in the respective selected branches of the 12 commercial banks. The study findings indicated that a significant proportion ( 86%) of the respondents are not aware of advertisements done by their banks to encourage usage of international trade finance products and recommended further research on the key success factors that Kenyan Banks should adopt to increase utilization of international trade finance products to businesses especially among the Kenyan SMEs. Keywords: Advertisement, Commercial Banks, International Trade Financ

Relationship Marketing Practices on Performance of Commercial Banks in Kenya

Banking as a service industry has recently experienced a tremendous growth through profits, ongoing deposits and revenues. This trend has had a significant influence on competition in the industry. Even so, Bank have successfully tried to brave the stiff competition even to stand out as one of the most successful Kenyan businesses. At the wake of this competition, relationship marketing practices have helped organizations establish durable and unending associations with their customers. This study was conducted to analyze the extent to which relationship marketing practices employed by Banks influence performance in the growing banking industry. A descriptive cross sectional research design was adopted. The target population comprised of 88 employees who are based at the bank headquarters in the following departments; customer service, corporate affairs, finance department, business development, operations and credit and risk department. The study employed a structured questionnaire to collect data. The research instrument was pilot tested with the aim of assessing both its reliability and validity. The collected data was analyzed with the aid of the SPSS software. The findings revealed that 88% of the respondents ascribed to the view that communication, been an aspect of marketing translated to a relative influence on the outcome of the bank’s performance. This means that performance of the bank is positively correlated to the marketing communication mix strategies employed by the bank. Keywords: Commercial banks, Communication, Service Differentiation, Service Quality

Volatile Organic Compounds in Brewed Kenyan Arabica Coffee Genotypes by Solid Phase Extraction Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry

Besides its stimulatory effect, coffee is appreciated and/or consumed for its pleasing aroma, which is a key quality index. The objective of this study was to characterize the volatile organic compounds in brewed Kenyan Arabica coffee genotypes. Solid phase Extraction (SPE) technique was used for the extraction of the organic compounds in the brewed coffee, while characterization of the compounds was done by gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Various volatile organic compounds were identified and classified into alcohols, aldehydes, carboxylic acids, furans, ketones, pyrazines and pyrroles. Differences were observed in the chromatographic profiles of the eluents from the seven coffee genotypes evaluated. Compounds such as 2, 6-dimethylpyrazine,5-methyl-1H-pyrole-2-carboxyaldehyde,2-furanmethanolacetate, 4-Ethylcatechol, Methoxy-4-vinylphenol, 2,6-Dihydroxyacetophenone and Ionone, were found to be present in all the coffee genotypes. This study demonstrated the presence of appreciable levels of volatile organic compounds in the coffee brew of the genotypes studied with variations in the types and concentrations being observed among the genotypes. Keywords: Kenya, Coffee genotypes, Solid Phase Extraction (SPE), Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) Volatile organic compounds

The adverse effects of albendazole and praziquantel in mass drug administration by trained schoolteachers

Eastern and Southern Africa Centre of International Parasite Control (ESACIPAC) conducted stool examinations for soil transmitted helminthiases (STH) and Schistosoma mansoni, among school children in Mwea Division, Central Kenya where both infections are endemic. Mass drug administrations (MDAs) were then conducted in 2004 and 2005 using schoolteachers trained on how to administer treatment, physically and psychologically prepare the children to take the medication, have them eat before treatment, handle minor and refer serious side effects to local health facilities. Local health workers were on standby to help manage severe side effects. This study examined side effects of the drugs and the teachers’ preparedness to handle the children when such effects occurred. No serious side effects requiring referral to the health centre occurred and the minor ones observed were temporal. In 2005 children in Mwea schools were treated with albendazole 400mg and praziquantel 40mg/kg body weight while those of Ndia, a neighboring division treated with only albendazole 400mg since there was low S.mansoni prevalence. Monitoring of side effects was done in two schools of Ndia and in three of Mwea through a questionnaire distributed to grade three pupils a week after treatment. Of 73 pupils from Mwea, 49.7% reported incidences of stomachache, vomiting/nausea, headache and dizziness whereas 39.2% of 186 from Ndia experienced incidences of cough, stomachache and headache. This shows that more pupils from Mwea, (albendazole and praziquantel) than from Ndia (albendazole alone) experienced minor side effects. These results show that both drugs have temporary, minor side effects, which can be managed by trained schoolteachers by ensuring that the school children do not swallow the drugs on an empty stomach and rest immediately after swallowing the drugs but should be closely monitored by health personnel. In this study, one trained schoolteacher could administer treatment to three hundred children in one day, which makes the approach cost effective and should be adopted nationally.Keywords: albendazole, praziquantel, soil transmitted helminthiasis, schistosomiasi

Mobile Technology As a Disruptive Innovation on Shopping Malls Rental Space: Case Study From Kenya

Mobile technology innovations have given businesses the rich of information access and the wider value chain reach. The case study was carried out at Sarit Centre Malls in Nairobi Kenya. The objectives of the case study included: to investigate how reducing cost of mobile technology affect demand for rental space in shopping malls; to establish how perceived usefulness of mobile technology affect demand for rental space in shopping malls; and to analyse how perceived ease of use of mobile technology affect demand for rental space in shopping malls. This case study adopted descriptive research design focusing on business managers from 126 businesses. A representative sample of 92 respondents was selected. The study also revealed that the usability aspects such as learnability, memorability of operating procedures that enhance human interaction in mobile technology has  led to reduced demand for display and exhibition space in malls and over the counter transactions. The case study reveals  further that lower information cost in mobile applications, invidualised perception of services has led to adoption of mobile transactions as a preferred means of business for previous mall customers. The study recommends that business owners in the physical malls can gain more value proposition if they offer virtual malls that can be accessed via mobile applications. There is also a need to integrate suitable mobile technology innovation in business models for competitive advantage