Experience In Kenya Research Articles

Can Africa's Saving Collapse Be Reversed?

Private saving in Sub-Saharan Africa declined from more than 11 percent of disposable income in the 1970s to less than 8 percent in the 1980s and only partially recovered (to less than 9 percent) in the 1990s. This article analyzes the determinants of private saving in Sub-Saharan Africa, seeking to explain the region's dismal performance and identify policies that could help to reverse the region's decline in saving. The analysis shows that in Sub-Saharan Africa causality runs from growth to investment (and perhaps to private saving), whereas a rise m the saving rate Granger-causes an increase in investment. The empirical analysis of private saving in Sub- Saharan Africa and other regions over 1970-95 suggests that private saving in Africa can be explained by standard behavioral models. According to these models private saving in Africa lags behind that in other regions (most notably, the high performing Asian economies) because of the region's lower per capita income, high young-age dependency ratio, and high dependence on aid. The combined effects of these factors substantially outweigh Africa's advantage from its lower public saving and higher government consumption. Finally, analysis of the experiences of Kenya, Zimbabwe, and Botswana provides further insight into the saving process in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Reckoning with the past: The contrast between the Kenyan and South African experiences

(2000). Reckoning with the past: The contrast between the Kenyan and South African experiences. Social Dynamics: Vol. 26, No. 2, pp. 8-28.

Civil Society and the Democratic Experience in Kenya: A Review of Constitution-Making from the Middle: Civil Society and Transition Politics in Kenya, 1992-1997, by Willy Mutunga. Sareat & Mwengo, Nairobi, 1999

Abstract

International experiences lead to using postcolonial feminism to transform life sciences curriculum

Abstract Three recent international science experiences in Kenya, Saskatchewan, and Sweden led to my rethinking feminism and postcolonial critiques in ways to apply insights into life sciences curriculum and research agendas in the United States. Postcolonial feminist theories and critiques open windows to understanding new biases in science. The conscious de-development of southern continents under colonization by countries in northern continents in the 19th and early 20th centuries created a historical backdrop in which centuries of indigenous knowledge of the environment, health, natural resources, and appropriate technologies were erased. This and the conditions of colonization create an atmosphere which allows most Western scientists to fail to challenge the notion that they have everything to give and nothing to learn from science, scientists, and technologies of developing countries. Current practices, such as the new laws and patents claimed through Trade Related Intellectual Property (TRIP) rights in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trades (GATT), may exacerbate the conditions of this atmosphere. Integrating knowledge gained from postcolonial feminism into the science curriculum insures that the next generation of scientists knows the contributions from indigenous peoples and developing countries.

Capitalism and nationalism at the end of empire: state and business in decolonizing Egypt, Nigeria, and Kenya, 1945-1963

This study of the decolonizing experiences of Egypt, Nigeria and Kenya elucidates the major factors that led to the transfer of power from British to African hands in these territories. Employing a comparative method in order to explain the different decolonizing narratives in each territory, the book argues that the different state policies toward the private business sector and foreign capital were the result of nationalist policies and attitudes and the influence of Cold War pressures on local events. Using business records as well as official government sources, the work highlights the economic aspects of decolonization and weighs the influence of nationalist movements, changes in metropolitan attitudes toward the empire, and shifts in the balance of power in bringing about the transfer of authority. The author concludes that the business communities did not play decisive roles, adhering instead to their time-honoured role of leaving political issues to colonial officials and their nationalist critics.

The Impact of T&V Extension in Africa: The Experience of Kenya and Burkina Faso

Agricultural extension programs based on the Training and Visit (T&V) system are operating in some thirty-one Sub-Saharan African countries. Evidence from Kenya and Burkina Faso shows that T&V management enhance the effectiveness of extension and that such programs support agricultural growth and produce high returns on investments. The data indicate that areas served by extension have higher yields and that within these areas the highest yields are achieved by farmers who participate directly in extension activities. As a result, extension helps to close the gap between die yields attainable with existing technologies and those actually realized by farmers. Closing this gap improves agricultural productivity in the short run, but long-term increases in output in Sub-Saharan Africa will depend on the development of improved technologies that are relevant to local conditions.

Assessment of dietary intake in rural communities in Africa: experiences in Kenya

Dissemination of state-of-the-art dietary assessment methods is especially critical in both developed and developing countries with rising rates of various chronic diseases. Such activity provides opportunities to address dietary issues related to specific cultures, especially non-Western cultures, and in groups with different styles of serving and eating food. Special considerations are necessary when planning and performing dietary intake studies in less literate rural communities in developing countries. In this study, dietary intake data collected from preschool children and elderly subjects in a rural area of Kenya with use of repeated 24-h recalls were compared with data obtained by means of 3-d weighed-food records. The two methods yielded similar results but the 24-h recall was quicker and less expensive. If 24-h recall studies are carefully planned and carried out and include consideration of local household measures and eating habits, they can provide reliable information, especially about communities in which people have simple and monotonous diets.

A Comparative Study of Further Education Staff Attitudes to Multi‐cultural and Racist Reforms in Art and Design Education

AbstractMy initial interest in multi‐cultural art education coupled with a wish to promote more cultural equality was inspired by my two years teaching experience in Kenya, Africa. The contrast of cultures gave me an objective view of my own culture on my return home and I found that I had not only changed as a person as a result, but wanted to continue that change, which gave me the motivation to become a research student, whilst lecturing. As a lecturer in and around the Bristol area it came to my notice through informal conversations with my colleagues at work that they held quite racist views. This I felt was a very insular way of viewing the world when global communications were very efficient and wide spread. In view of this, I chose to investigate to what extent Further Education staff in art and design were racist, and to consider how that might affect students' performance in terms of self‐esteem, achievement and assessment. I took a psychodynamic approach to the interview schedule which was based on my experience and training as an art therapist, as well as an artist‐sculptor and lecturer, and used Race Awareness Training (RAT), and specific criteria to base and analyse the data collected during the research. An interpretative paradigm was used in the final analysis and evaluation of this small scale study. The qualitative methodology used was felt to be more applicable to a personal approach because it gained clearer and more honest information in this sensitive field.

Occupational Health Policy Issues in Developing Countries: The Experience in Kenya

Occupational Health Policy Issues in Developing Countries: The Experience in Kenya

User charges in government health facilities in Kenya: effect on attendance and revenue.

In this paper we study demand effects of user charges in a district health care system using cross-sectional data from household and facility surveys. The effects are examined in public as well as in private health facilities. We also look briefly at the impact of fees on revenue and service quality in government facilities. During the period of cost-sharing in public clinics, attendance dropped by about 50%. This drop prompted the government to suspend the fees for approximately 20 months. Over the 7 months after suspension of fees, attendance at government health centres increased by 41%. The suspension further caused a notable movement of patients from the private sector to government health facilities. The revenue generated by user fees covered 2.4% of the recurrent health budget. Some 40% of the facilities did not spend the fee revenue they collected, mainly due to cumbersome procedures of expenditure approvals. The paper concludes with lessons from Kenya's experience with user charges.

Book Review: A Colour Atlas of Surgical Cases in the Tropics: Experience in Northern Kenya

Book Review: A Colour Atlas of Surgical Cases in the Tropics: Experience in Northern Kenya

Exchange Market Reform, Inflation, and Fiscal Deficits

This paper examines the short- and long-run effects of exchange market reform in developing countries. The first part reviews the recent experience of Guyana, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Sierra Leone, and Sri Lanka with exchange market reform. The second part studies analytically the short-run dynamics of the parallel market premium and the money supply upon unification, when the post-reform regime consists of either a pure float or a managed float. The third part discusses the impact of unification on inflation and quasi-fiscal deficits, and identifies a variety of implicit taxes and subsidies that must be taken into account in assessing the longer-run effects of exchange market reform.

Exchange Market Reform, Inflation, and Fiscal Deficits

This paper examines the short- and long-run effects of exchange market reform in developing countries. The first part reviews the recent experience of Guyana, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Sierra Leone, and Sri Lanka with exchange market reform. The second part studies analytically the short-run dynamics of the parallel market premium and the money supply upon unification, when the post-reform regime consists of either a pure float or a managed float. The third part discusses the impact of unification on inflation and quasi-fiscal deficits, and identifies a variety of implicit taxes and subsidies that must be taken into account in assessing the longer-run effects of exchange market reform.

Missions and Mental Health: A Personal Safari

This is a description of one psychologist's involvement in missions and mental health with explicit sharing of impressions from a 3-month cross cultural experience in Kenya in the spring of 1992. It covers some aspects of the developing dialogue regarding mental health issues for MKs and for missionaries, and it provides an example of one professional's expanding awareness of cross-cultural issues. It is a personal statement and journey but raises the possibilities for a variety of opportunities for this kind of very practical integration of faith and learning.

Clinical Education Experience in Kenya. Clouten N, Hill K; Department of Physical Therapy, Andrews University, Berrien Springs, MI 49104.

Clinical Education Experience in Kenya. Clouten N, Hill K; Department of Physical Therapy, Andrews University, Berrien Springs, MI 49104.

Assistance to women's businesses – evaluating the options

The 'Women in Development' movement and women's income-generation programmes have traditionally taken a broad-based welfare approach which has emphasized improving women's general living standards rather than enhancing their independence and active participation in the main-stream of the economy. Over the past several years, people have become increasingly aware of the need to focus on entrepreneurship development as a more specific objective in the support of women in developing countries. The effectiveness of women entrepreneurship development programmes, however, has been hampered by the fact that people are still putting too much emphasis on gender, and not enough emphasis on 'entrepreneurship' as such. This article, based on experience in Kenya, presents a strategy for more effective women entrepreneurship development through a gender-neutral approach.

Impact of user fees on attendance at a referral centre for sexually transmitted diseases in Kenya

We investigated the impact of a short-lived policy of charging fees to patients attending public-sector outpatient health facilities in Kenya by collecting data on attendance at Nairobi's Special Treatment Clinic for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) before (23 months), during (9 months), and after (15 months) the user-charge period. During the user-charge period, the seasonally adjusted total mean monthly attendance of men decreased significantly to 40% (95% Cl 36-45) of that before fees were levied. Attendance rose in the post-user-charge period, but reached only 64% (59-68) of the pre-user-charge level. For women, the adjusted total mean monthly attendance during the user-charge period was reduced significantly to 65% (55-77) of the pre-user-charge level. Mean monthly attendance by women rose in the post-user-charge period to 22% (9-37) above the pre-user-charge level. There was no evidence of an increase in attendance over the course of the user-charge period among either men or women. The introduction of user fees probably increased the number of untreated STDs in the population, with potentially serious long-term health implications. The user-fee experience in Kenya should be carefully evaluated before similar measures are introduced elsewhere.

The Impact of Space: Land Division and Urban Development in Kenya and South Africa

In the context of the debate between Belsky and Karaska, who advocate a location-allocation approach to rural development, and Rondinelli, who argues for a functional integration approach, this article adds an element neglected by both, the impact of land division on the development of urban systems. Urban development in Kenya between 1962 and 1989 was greatly affected by the division of land. A case study from South Africa demonstrates that Kenya's experience may be applicable elsewhere.

Developing institutional capacity to meet the housing needs of the urban poor: Experience in Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia

jects have been implemented in Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia, mostly with World Bank assistance. The extent to which the components and institutional mechanisms developed during these projects have been sustainable and replicable is analysed. The institutional capacity of the public sector is assessed with respect to the delivery of land with secure tenure, provision and operation of infrastructure and establishment of a housing finance system. Potentially replicable methods of working in and with low income communities which were developed during project implementation are reviewed. The impact of the projects on the capacity of the construction and building materials production and supply sectors is also discussed.

Breeding Seasonality and Reproductive Success of White-Fronted Bee-Eaters in Kenya

AssmAcT.-White-fronted Bee-eaters (Merops bullockoides) at Nakuru, Kenya, reproduce in an environment where food supply for provisioning nestlings is unpredictable and generally scarce. With data from 8 yr of study on three populations of bee-eaters, we examined how these environmental conditions have influenced the timing of breeding and patterns of nesting success. Breeding coincided with the general pattern of rainfall in the Rift Valley. Kenya experiences two rainy seasons per year, and individual bee-eaters bred with either the long or the short rains, but not both. Members of a given population bred colonially and quite synchronously, but members of adjacent populations were often out of phase with one another. As a result, the distribution of longand short-rains breeding populations formed a spatial mosaic. Reproductive success was highly variable but typically low. Mean (?SD) fledging success was 0.57 ? 0.83 young, and only one nest in four produced an independent offspring (6 months of age). Most prefledging mortality (88%) was due to egg losses and the starvation of young. Very little (7%) was attributable to predation. Social factors, primarily intraspecific nest parasitism, were responsible for nearly half of all egg losses, and represent an important cost of group living. Starvation, the single most important source of prefledging mortality, claimed the lives of 48% of all hatchlings. Starvation was greatest at times of low food availability, in nests with large broods, and in nests tended by pairs without helpers. Hatching was asynchronous. This enhanced the ability of older nestlings to monopolize limited food supplies, and resulted in the selective death of the smallest nestling first. Such brood reduction, coupled with the ability of nestlings to slow their development rate in response to food stress, is considered an adaptation for coping with the unpredictable variation in food supply commonly faced by these birds. Received 17 August 1990, accepted 18 January 1991.