Evaluation of the Potential use of Bagasse and Sugar Millswaste Water as Substrate for Biogas Production

Biogas is a sustainable alternative source of energy to fossil fuels. Its production also serves as sink for biological wastes and it is a pollution control measure. Most of biogas generation units in Kenya utilize animal wastes as the substrate. However, the bio fuel potential of bagasse, the abundant crop residues like co-products in sugarcane-based industries remain underutilized. The idea of converting bagasse into additional energy is gaining attention, especially through government commitments on increasing the renewable energy generation combined with the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions. In this study bagasse samples collected from Chemelil sugar mills were passed through multiple sieves of different sizes to obtain different particle sizes. Mills waste water was also collected from Chemelil sugar factory and analyzed for pH and Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) to establish their biogas production potential, the analyzed mills waste water was then mixed with different particle sizes of bagasse and allowed to be digested anaerobically. Volume of the gas collected from each flask containing different particle sizes of bagasse was measured to identify the optimum conditions for biogas production. The study showed that the mills waste water that had the highest TDS (130g/L) yielded relatively higher volumes of biogas when mixed with bagasse of different particle sizes. Bagasse of particle size ≤0.600mm produced the highest volume when mixed with the mills waste water with TDS and pH of130g/l and 4.67 respectively. Designing and installing a digester system that allows for the control of TDS and pH in mills wastewater and utilizes bagasse of particle size ≤0.600mm would be expected to produce reasonable amount of biofuel and put a check on environmental pollution problems associated with bagasse and sugar mill waste waters in sugar factories

Evaluation of crop arrangement and phosphorus rate on performance of maize-common bean intercropping in western Kenya

The effect of phosphorus (P) rate and crop arrangement on the performance of component crops in maize-bean intercropping systems was investigated at two sites; Malanga and Bugeng’i in western Kenya. A split plot design with five crop arrangements in the main plots i.e., one row of maize alternating with one row of beans (conventional), maize and beans planted in the same hole, two rows of maize alternating with two of beans (Mbili), sole maize and sole beans, in a factorial combination with three P rates; 0, 30, and 60 kg ha-1 in the subplots, was used. Bean yields were low (< 1 t ha-1) but they increased with increasing P rate at both sites. Response of maize to P fertilizer was however poor at Malanga mainly due to Striga weed infestation. Yields of beans did not significantly differ among crop arrangements at both sites. At Bungeng’i, there was a significant interaction between P rate and crop arrangement. At this site, the maize yield in the conventional arrangement increased with increasing P rate but for the Mbili arrangement, the grain yield from application of 30 kg P ha-1 was significantly higher than that at 0 kg P ha-1 and similar to that 60 kg P ha-1. Therefore, it is not beneficial to fertilize beyond 30 kg P ha-1 at this site with the Mbili arrangement. Intercropping was beneficial in all crop arrangements (Land equivalent ratio >1) and can therefore be practiced, except for maize and beans planted in the same hole with no P application at Bugeng’i

Sorghum Landraces Production Practices in Nyanza, Coast and Eastern Regions, Kenya

Sorghum Sorghum bicolar L. is an important cereal crop grown in the semi-arid areas. It is rank as the fifth key cereal crop worldwide. The ability of sorghum to adapt to drought, salinity, infertile soils, and high temperatures makes it a critical crop in the dry regions. However, farmers grow many landraces some of which do not perform well since the majority cannot afford nitrogenous fertilizers to boost their harvest. Therefore, a baseline survey was conducted in Eastern, Nyanza and Coastal regions to assess the production systems for sorghum. Structured questionnaires were used to gather information from a total of 76 randomly selected farmers in the study regions. Data on socio-economic characteristics, sorghum varieties, use of farm inputs, and source of seeds, farming systems, traits preference, farm sizes, yields and constraints in production of the crop was collected. Parameters studied were analyzed using Statistical Programmes for Social Sciences (SPSS) (IBM SPSS Statistics 20). Results showed that majority of respondents in Eastern (99%), 80% in Nyanza and all respondents in the coastal region cultivated landraces. Most of the respondents had farm sizes between 0.5-5acres. A larger proportion of respondents in the three regions reported low harvests from their farms, recording below 5 bags every season. Most of the farmers across the three regions intercrop sorghum with other crops with all respondents in Eastern, 80% in Coast and 68% in Nyanza. Some farmers plant sorghum without fertilizers, others used either inorganic or organic fertilizers while the rest use both organic and inorganic. The traits desired by farmers in the region included high yields, early maturity, resistance to pest and diseases, sweetness and tolerance to drought. Farmers cited pests and diseases, weeds such as striga, and drought as the key constraints to sorghum production in the regions. Key words: drought, landraces, sorghum, tolerance, traits DOI: 10.7176/JESD/10-10-16 Publication date:May 31st 201

Effectiveness of conditional cash transfers (Afya credits incentive) to retain women in the continuum of care during pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period in Kenya: a cluster-randomised trial

OBJECTIVES: Given high maternal and child mortality rates, we assessed the impact of conditional cash transfers (CCTs) to retain women in the continuum of care (antenatal care (ANC), delivery at facility, postnatal care (PNC) and child immunisation). DESIGN: We conducted an unblinded 1:1 cluster-randomised controlled trial. SETTING: 48 health facilities in Siaya County, Kenya were randomised. The trial ran from May 2017 to December 2019. PARTICIPANTS: 2922 women were recruited to the control and 2522 to the intervention arm. INTERVENTIONS: An electronic system recorded attendance and triggered payments to the participant's mobile for the intervention arm (US$4.5), and phone credit for the control arm (US$0.5). Eligibility criteria were resident in the catchment area and access to a mobile phone. PRIMARY OUTCOMES: Primary outcomes were any ANC, delivery, any PNC between 4 and 12 months after delivery, childhood immunisation and referral attendance to other facilities for ANC or PNC. Given problems with the electronic system, primary outcomes were obtained from maternal clinic books if participants brought them to data extraction meetings (1257 (50%) of intervention and 1053 (36%) control arm participants). Attendance at referrals to other facilities is not reported because of limited data. RESULTS: We found a significantly higher proportion of appointments attended for ANC (67% vs 60%, adjusted OR (aOR) 1.90; 95% CI 1.36 to 2.66) and child immunisation (88% vs 85%; aOR 1.74; 95% CI 1.10 to 2.77) in intervention than control arm. No intervention effect was seen considering delivery at the facility (90% vs 92%; aOR 0.58; 95% CI 0.25 to 1.33) and any PNC attendance (82% vs 81%; aOR 1.25; 95% CI 0.74 to 2.10) separately. The pooled OR across all attendance types was 1.64 (1.28 to 2.10). CONCLUSIONS: Demand-side financing incentives, such as CCTs, can improve attendance for appointments. However, attention needs to be paid to the technology, the barriers that remain for delivery at facility and PNC visits and encouraging women to attend ANC visits within the recommended WHO timeframe. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT03021070

Relationship between Selected Personal Determinants and Examination Cheating among Kenyan Secondary School Students

The present study investigated the relationship between selected personal determinants and examination cheating among Kenyan secondary school students. This study used a Sequential Explanatory design. The target population was 51,900 students in Kisumu County within 153 public secondary schools categorized as 2 National secondary schools, 21 extra county schools, and 130 county and sub-county schools. A simple random sampling technique was used to determine sample size which comprised of 380 respondents since the study was confined within specific ecological boundary which was public secondary schools. Data collection instruments included questionnaires, for general data collection from the respondents and in-depth interview schedules for one to one interview of respondents. The finding of the study shows that there was statistically significant positive correlation (r=.592, n=360,