The effect of capital flows on the Kenyan economy

Foreign capital inflows (FCI) play an important role in the economic development of the recipient country as they fund investments and promote growth. However, the size and composition of such inflows are determined on the basis of country specific requirements. The study investigates the impact of capital inflows on the economy of Kenya at a time when the government implemented economic reform measures to stabilize the economy and restore sustainable growth. More specifically, the study examines the impact of foreign capital flows remittances such as overseas workers remittance, official development aid, and external debt, on selected macro-economic variables using monthly time series data and a single-equation empirical approach. The study findings reveal that some forms of FCI are not influenced by the macro economic variables in the country but by other factors such as political stability and policy variables

The Yokes of Gender and Class: The Policy Reforms and Implications for Equitable Access to Education in Kenya

Kenya, a former British colony, attained its political independence in 1963. Despite its political independence, Kenya inherited a colonial education system that was based on segregation and exclusion because of race, culture, class, and gender. This is a qualitative analysis examining the education system in Kenya. In the analysis, we explore gender and class barriers that may inhibit education for women in Kenya. We review existing secondary literature on policy documents; reflect on our experiences and observations; and also reflect on interviews with Njeri and Nyokavi, who live in the 21st century ‘post-colonial’ Kenya. As Kenyan women from subsistence-farming backgrounds, we, the authors, seemed destined to remain at the very bottom of the hierarchical education structure established during the colonial period. We explore the impact of contemporary, globally and locally mandated education policy reforms and emerging social service provision partnerships. These are often packaged as policy reforms and viable strategies of a just, equitable, and fair distribution of opportunities for all, meant to correct the colonial disparities. Our arguments are informed by the system's discursive framework (Wane 2000b) and the anti-colonial discursive framework (Amadiume 1989, 1997; Dei 1999, 2000; Oyewumi 1997; Wane 2002). The analysis authenticates that, since independence, Kenya has realized tremendous educational growth at all levels. However, such educational reforms have resulted in the exclusion of many children who are from low socio-economic groups, in essence replacing the racial segregation of the colonial system with cultural and class-based inequities of the post-colonial society.

English second language (L2) literacy instruction and acquisition in Kenyan rural primary schools : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of M. Ed. (Special Education)

Teachers' literacy instructional approaches in English language for children in lower primary (Year 1 to Year 3) Kenyan schools were investigated. Fifteen teachers were given an error scenario task and a questionnaire task, which were used to categorise them as either using context-based, word-based, or mixed (using both context-based and word-level strategies) approaches. The aim was to determine which instructional approach is most effective for early literacy development in a second language context. The results indicated that slightly more than a half of the teachers preferred to use mixed approaches. Further, children who received mixed approach instruction preformed significantly better on all literacy and literacy-related measures than children who did not receive such instruction. Language, reading and reading-related tasks in English Language were administered to 148 children. The aim was to investigate the literacy developmental trends across the years and establish which of the two variables, word identification skills or second language oral ability, influenced reading comprehension performance. The results indicated that word identification skills independently influenced reading comprehension performance in both Year 2 and Year 3 classes, but language skills did not

Manager and Provider Perspectives of the Work Environment Experienced by Associate Clinicians, Nurses and Midwives Who Deliver Emergency Obstetric Care in Tanzania

Positive practice environments promote the health, safety and well-being of health workers by supporting professionalism, acknowledging performance and ensuring opportunities for professional growth. According to the International Collaborating Partners of the Positive Practice Environments Campaign, positive practice environments foster a motivated, productive and high-performing pool of workers who deliver high quality care. Research shows that achieving positive practice environments for health care professionals is problematic worldwide. In Tanzania, the capacity of human resources for health managers to implement deliberate and strategic action to plan for and effectively deploy health workers, as well as safeguard their practice environments, is severely diminished. The basic strategic human resources management (SHRM) components model was used to guide understanding of the relationship between people management practices and the practice environment. This dissertation examined the people management practices that have been implemented in Tanzania and their impact on the practice environment experienced by associate clinicians (ACs), nurses and midwives who deliver emergency obstetric care (EmOC). Interview and survey data obtained from frontline ACs, nurses and midwives and members of Council Health Management Teams (CHMTs) tasked with planning for and deploying health human resources offered provider and managerial perspectives of the practice environment within which EmOC is delivered in Tanzania. The eight people management practices specified in the basic SHRM components model were applied in varying extents across the 48 districts assessed. Partial implementation contributed to loss of motivation and undermined the performance of ACs, nurses and midwives who deliver the essential interventions constituting EmOC in Tanzania

Implications of Economic Partnership Agreements on agriculture: the case of Kenya’s horticultural sub-sector

A Master’s degree Dissertation presented in partial Fulfilment for the Award of Master of Management in Public Policy at University of Witwatersrand, Wits School of Governance (WSG), 2016As a result of the dependency created during the colonial period and later through preferential trade initiatives, Europe has been and continues to be Kenya’s major trading partner. The current trade relationship between Kenya and Europe was recently formalised after the signing of the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs), a reciprocal and comprehensive free trade agreement that is legal under Article XXIV of General Agreement on Tariff and Trade (GATT). The agreement has caused great debate on whether it is truly beneficial to Kenya in light of the asymmetrical levels of development, with many questioning what role the agreement will play towards sustainable growth and development and specifically in the horticultural sub-sector. Sharing the pitfalls of both the Lomé Convention and Cotonou Agreement that failed to deliver the expected development there is reason to believe that few gains will be made by signing the EPAs as they are today. The horticultural sub-sector is a major provider of employment, especially in the rural areas, and is the second largest foreign exchange earner for Kenya. Facing increasing domestic and international demand, coupled with continued and enhanced market access to Europe, participation in the highly profitable sub-sector has the potential of transforming rural agriculture by presenting an opportunity for small-scale farmers to increase their income and reduce poverty. As a non-Least Developed Country (LDC) country, the loss of trade preference for Kenya could severely undermine export competitiveness and damage the horticultural sub-sector which is heavily dependent on exports to the European Union (EU). The main objectives of the Kenyan government for signing the EPAs include sustaining the current market preferences, avoiding macroeconomic instability and the disruption of economic activities in the agricultural sector. The study found that, given Kenya’s substantial dependency on the horticultural sub-sector and the limited trade schemes options available to engage in trade with the EU, the government had no option but to sign the EPAs. The failure to diversify the economy, inadequate public institutions, insufficient human and financial capacity, declining public investments in agriculture and limited intra-African trade and the failure to seek other market destinations are some of the reasons why the government entered into the agreement. The Kenyan government needs to aggressively increase investments in the agricultural sector in order to enable transformation and promote diversification through value addition. Manufacturing should be prioritised as this will enable the economy to become less exposed to commodity price fluctuations. The government should seek to develop and increase intraAfrica trade as well as explore other market options in Asia, North America and South America in efforts to lessen Kenya’s dependency on Europe. Further, Kenya and other African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries should, instead of signing a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) such as an EPA, collectively call for an improved EU General Scheme of Preference (GSP) tailored for both LDC and non-LDC countries that would provide real cooperation and development.XL201

Satellite Remote Sensing of Woody and Herbaceous Leaf Area for Improved Understanding of Forage Resources and Fire in Africa

In sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) tree-grass systems commonly referred to as savannas dominating drylands, play a critical role in social, cultural, economic and environmental systems. These coupled natural-human systems support millions of people through pastoralism, are important global biodiversity hotspots and play a critical role in global biogeochemical cycles. Despite the importance of SSA savannas, they have been marginalized for years as most governments neglect dryland resources in favor of agricultural research and development assistance. Hence, lack of spatially and temporally accurate information on the status and trends in savanna resources has led to poor planning and management. This scenario calls for research to derive information that can be used to guide development, management and conservation of savannas for enhanced human wellbeing, livestock productivity and wildlife management. The above considerations motivated a more detailed study of the composition, temporal and spatial variability of savannas, comprising of three components. Remote sensing data was combined with field and literature data to: partition Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) total leaf area index (LAIA) time series into its woody (LAIW) and herbaceous (LAIH) constituents for SSA; and application of the partitioned LAI to determine how changes in herbaceous and woody LAI, affect fire regimes and livestock herbivory in SSA. The results of this analysis include presentation of algorithm for partitioning of MODIS LAIA from 2003-2015. Biome phenologies, seasonality and distribution of woody and herbaceous LAI are presented and the long-term average 8-day phenologies availed for evaluation and research application. In determining how changes in herbaceous and woody LAI affect fire regimes in SSA, we found that herbaceous fuelload (indexed as LAIH) correlated more closely with fire, than with LAIW, providing more explanatory power than overall biomass in fire activity. We observed an asymptotic relationship between herbaceous fuel-load and fire with trees promoting fires in dry ecosystems but suppressing fires in wetter regions. In the livestock herbivory analysis we found that the more refined forage indices (LAIH and LAIW) explained more of the variability in livestock distribution than the aggregate biomass, with livestock favoring moderate to nutrient rich forage resources dependent on animal body size

Reconceptualizing Chilly Climate: Minority Faculty in North American Academe

Reconceptualizing Chilly Climate: Minority Faculty in North American Academ

Models for Flow Efficiency Assessment in Oil and Gas Pipelines

Abstract Flow efficiency is largely affected by deposits and corrosion in pipelines. The purpose of this study was to develop models for assessing the effect of deposits and corrosion on flow efficiency in oil and gas pipelines to ensure production and safety. A new advanced analytical method developed in this study was employed. The data required involved in-line inspection data and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition obtained from the test pipeline. Samples used for the study involved the test and control pipeline laid parallel to each other. The resulting models were capable of predicting the flow efficiency as well as assessing the effects of deposits and corrosion with high accuracy indicated by an error of 3% when compared with similar field values. To reduce the effects of deposits and corrosion on flow efficiency, an optimal pigging frequency model was developed with results agreeing well with those from the existing literature

African Canadian Women and the Question of Identity

Canada is a nation that embraces diversity and multiculturalism as its corner stone for building the sense of belonging for all her citizens. Many Black Canadian women, however, feel excluded and not part of the Canadian mosaic. This paper shows the complexities associated with understandings and interpretations of identity and discusses Black women's question of identity as situated in Black Canadian feminist theory. Résumé Le Canada est une nation qui encourage la diversité et le multiculturalisme comme sa pierre de coin pour bâtir un sentiment d’appartenance pour tous ses citoyens. Un bon nombre de femmes noires canadiennes, par contre, se sentent exclues et de ne pas faire partie de la mosaïque canadienne. Cet article montre les complexités associées avec la compréhension et les interprétations de l’identité et discute de la question de l’identité des femmes noires telle que située dans la théorie féministe de la femme noire canadienne