PhD Graduands

Beef value chain is a major part of the livestock sector in Kenya contributing to food security,
livelihoods and the economy. Beef production mainly takes place in the arid and semi-arid
areas (ASALs) of the country. The value chain is climate sensitive whereby it is drastically
affected by effects of negative climate like droughts and floods. On the flipside, the value chain
is also a contributor to negative climate change through emitted methane greenhouse gas
(GHG) from the produced animals and the value chain by products and/or waste. The beef
value chain is characterized as both informal and fragmented, and driven by micro, small and
medium enterprises (MSMEs) actors. In the light of the aforementioned, as advocated through
Sustainable Development Goal 12, sustainability of the beef value chain would only be assured
through responsible production and consumption practices. Thus, establishing and analyzing
the status of integration of climate smart initiatives by MSMEs actors was a fundamental
necessity in generating data to inform policy on responsible consumption and production
practices within the beef value chain (sustainable production and consumption, and
environmental protection).
In spite of the necessity for studies on the status of integration of climate smart initiatives in
the beef value chain, prior to this study there existed scanty information on the same. In
particular, there was scanty information available prior to this study on how the existing beef
value chain governance interphase with the actors/stakeholders in terms of their integration,
required skills (knowledge, attitudes and practices) and how the same influence existing value
chain practices. The current study helped to unravel the existing status of climate smart
integration by MSMEs in order to inform policy on causes of observed worrying practices for
possible interventions. Moreover, the study serves to inform future decisions to be made on the
Kenya’s beef value chain in achieving the global Sustainable Development Goal number 12 on
responsible consumption and production practices.

The study was guided by the overall objective that sought to assess the status of integration of
climate smart initiatives by micro, small and medium enterprises in beef value Chain in Kajiado
County. The specific objectives were to (1) evaluate knowledge, attitudes and practices of
micro, small and medium enterprises actors on integration of climate smart initiatives in the
beef value chain in Kajiado, (2) determine enablers of climate smart initiatives integration by
micro, small and medium enterprises in the beef value chain in Kajiado County, and (3 analyze
barriers of climate smart initiatives integration by micro, small and medium enterprises in the
beef value chain in Kajiado County.
Sustainable integration of CSA initiatives by MSMEs (dependent variable) is determined by
factors such as actors requisite skills (actors knowledge, attitude and practices), and enablers
and barriers of integration (independent variables) as modulated by existing legal and
institutional frameworks (laws, policies and institutions) (moderating variables). Enablers and
barriers of integration include negative and/or positive prevailing political, social, economic,
technological, legal and environmental issues of the value chain. The theoretical frameworks
used included those that advance arguments on technology adoption, which seeks to understand
and explain constructs for enablers and barriers of CSA integration by actors by taking into
consideration the core concepts of predicted CSA TIMPs integration based on perceived
usefulness and perceived ease of use of the introduced TIMPs. Additional factors that seemed
to have an impact on TIMPs acceptance by actors such as actors’ individual differences,
innovativeness, concern for privacy and security and peer pressure, were put into consideration
in the advanced arguments.
The study applied cross-sectional research that involved looking at KAP data from beef value
chain actor population at one specific point and correlational research where non-experimental
research methods were used to study the relationship between integration of MSME actors and
environmental integrity variables with the help of statistical analysis. Data for KAP was

collected by applying the cross-sectional research study from beef value chain actors (n=459;
farmers, traders, processors and consumers). The correlational research study design was
applied to collect data for enablers and barriers for integration of MSMEs and adoption of CSA
in the value chain sustainability in relation to environmental integrity (n=459).
There was an observed poor understanding of the concept of climate smart agriculture by beef
value chain actors, with more than half of them failing to understand the concept. There was
reported actors’ recognition that the beef value chain could affect the environment and that
over 70% of them were concerned about how their own practices could cause negative climate
change. There was actors’ willingness to take part in CSA initiatives that protected the
environment as long as they also brought about economic gains to the beef value chain by
ensuring maximum yields and profitability. An observation was made that there were in
existence legal and institutional frameworks for actors integration of CSA TIMPs within the
beef value chain in Kenya, albeit poor actors’ knowledge and compliance on them. In addition
there was reported impediment and barriers to CSA integration by beef value chain actors that
included lack of county budgetary investment and incentives, inadequate access to market
information, inadequate value chain networks for engagement, negative cultural and social
beliefs, and inadequate physical infrastructure.
The main interventions recommended by this study, based on the key observations made, for
enhanced integration of CSA TIMPs by beef value chain actors in ASAL counties like Kajiado
were (a) initiation of knowledge, attitude and practices capacity building programmes for beef
value chain actors for better understanding and adoption of the concept of climate smart
agriculture for sustainable beef production and consumption while ensuring environmental
integrity, (b) development of capacity building programmes by the county governments that
take into account attributes of actors’ recognition that the beef value chain has an impact on
climate change, actors’ willingness to take part in CSA initiatives that protect the environment

as long as they also brought about economic gains, and actors’ recognition that their practices
are key elements of sustainability, (c) engagement of actors by county governments in
awareness creation platforms that target actors’ education for enhanced knowledge and
compliance with existing legal and institutional arrangements for integration of MSMEs and
adoption of CSA TIMPs, and (d) county government to facilitate integration of CSA into the
beef value chain by providing county budgetary investments and incentives, providing market
access information services, creating value chain networks for engagement, creating positive
cultural and social beliefs, and providing adequate physical infrastructure.

Near-infrared Raman spectroscopy is a vibrational spectroscopic technique capable of providing fingerprint-type information on biochemical molecules. For the early detection of cancer, highly sensitive and specific biomarkers are needed. Particularly, biomarkers in biofluids can be useful in reflecting the early presence of cancer in the body. The aim of this study was to test and evaluate novelized machine learning techniques for the detection and identification of trace biomarker alterations in saliva and blood pointing to the onset and progression of leukemia and breast cancers via a laser Raman spectral analysis approach. Measurements were done in the
500-1800 cm-1 region, based on a 785 nm excitation laser.

Trace biomarkers were studied by analysis of intermediate and higher-order principal components. The utility of intermediate and higher-order principal components in revealing subtle biochemical alterations (trace biomarkers) during cancer progression was first experimented on the discrimination of prostate malignancy based on a model biological tissue (metastatic androgen insensitive (PC3) and immortalized normal (PNT1a) prostate cell lines). For prostate, breast, and leukemia malignancy, the statistical relevance of principal components were determined by the use of the two-sample t-test and the effect size statistical criteria.

For breast cancer and leukemia studies, the concentrations of trace biomarker alterations were estimated using the partial least squares regression model applied to the spectra of pure compounds and the biofluids spectrum. Then, various optimized chemometric methods that include independent component analysis (ICA), multidimensional scaling (MDS), partial least square discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), kernel density estimators, support vector machines (SVM), and backpropagation neural networks (BPNN) were utilized to analyze and classify the blood and saliva trace biomarkers’ Raman spectra from healthy and diseased subjects.

Results using pairwise comparison of mean intensity (peak intensity ratios) and multivariate statistical techniques disclosed that biochemical changes of proteins, lipids, and nucleic acid components components can be associated with prostate cancer, breast cancer, and leukemia progression. Four prominent regions: 566 ± 0.70 cm-1, 630 cm-1, 1370 ± 0.86 cm-1, 1618 ± 1.73 cm-1; and six subtle regions: 1076 cm-1, (1232, 1234 cm-1), (1276, 1278 cm-1), (1330, 1333cm-1), (1434, 1442 cm-1), (1471, 1479 cm-1) were identified, which can be regarded as useful biomarkers for prostate cancer diagnosis. Similarly, six spectral regions were determined: 589 cm-1, 594 cm-1, 630 cm-1, 1626 cm-1, 1630 cm-1 and 1638 cm-1, which can be regarded as new biomarkers of breast cancer in the blood-based breast cancer spectroscopy. The fitting model revealed that proteins, nucleic acids, and lipid biochemicals in blood and saliva increased with breast malignancy, whereas amounts of glycogen decreased with progression of breast malignancy. Using leukemia data, PLS regression quantitative analysis in the fingerprint (500-1800 cm-1) region revealed that biochemical changes of proteins and nucleic acids in leukemia patients increased with malignancy. In contrast, quantitative analysis based on the selected trace biomarker regions suggested that biochemical changes of proteins and membranous lipids increased with leukemia malignancy whereas biochemical changes of nucleic acids, glycogen, and non-membranous lipids decreased with leukemia malignancy.

The cross-validated models utilized to analyze and classify the blood and saliva Raman spectra from healthy subjects, breast tumor patients, and leukemia patients yielded diagnostic sensitivities of 46% to 100%, as well as specificities of 71% to 100%. The ICA-MDS followed by PLS-DA and ICA-MDS followed by kernel density estimators proved to be powerful diagnostic algorithms for breast cancer detection using blood and saliva, respectively, yielding diagnostic sensitivities and specificities of more than 95%. The RBF-SVM diagnostic model performed better than linear SVM in leukemia and breast cancer diagnosis yielding a sensitivity of up to 92%.

This difference in performance was attributed to the nonparametric capability of RBF kernel functions in handling complex spectroscopic data. The BPNN diagnostic model performed better than linear-SVM and RBF-SVM diagnostic models in diagnosing breast cancer, potentially due to the capability of BPNN converging on a global minimum that allows a better tolerance to the noise
in non-linear datasets. Though the RBF-SVM model performed better than the linear-SVM and BPNN model in diagnosing leukemia, utility of saliva spectra yielded poor diagnostic capabilities in terms of sensitivity parameters. This could be due to inherently small scattering cross-section and the strong background fluorescence interference of the Raman technique on saliva samples, which most likely made the Raman technique not sensitive enough for detecting the subtle biochemical changes in human saliva samples. Although the number of samples involved in this study were few, the results demonstrate that analysis of Raman spectra of blood and saliva using optimized chemometric diagnostic algorithms has great potential for the noninvasive and labelfree detection of breast cancer and leukemia.

Waterborne diseases pose major challenges in developing countries. The World Health Organization estimates that 90.0% of the 2.3 million people who die annually due to waterborne diseases come from developing countries. At the same time fluorosis occurrence in the world’s geological fluoride belts has left many people maimed due to drinking highly fluoridated water. This work is in two parts. The first part reports on the fabrication of diatomaceous earth (DE)-based water filter membranes whose mechanical strength was altered through the application of organic binders, and filtration characteristics using charcoal and carbon activated with molasses to improve the efficiency of the filters. The effect of the use of a static magnetic field in water purification was the second part investigated in this
work. The ceramic membranes were fabricated from DE-powder and plant-based organic binders (Abelmoschus esculentus, Basella alba, Corchorus olitoris, and Aloe vera) in a ratio of 2:1 by mass. The dried samples were fired at 700.0 to 1150.0 °C and cooled at room temperature. A third of the fabricated membranes were soaked in molasses for 24.0 hours and heat-treated anaerobically for 2.0 hours at 600.0 °C then cooled to room temperature for 24.0 hours. The elemental analysis was carried out on binders, DE powder, molasses, and membranes using an x-ray fluorescence spectrometer. The x-ray diffraction pattern of DE powder and membrane was also determined. The three-point test was done using Universal Testing Instrument (Model EN 77065 7108CCN) 60000 N and the bulk density and the porosity were determined by the Archimedes’ immersion technique. The fabricated membranes were then made to filter water contaminated with Escherichia coli, Rotavirus, and sodium fluoride. The second part reports on the efficiency of water purification using a 0.8 T static magnetic field from permanent magnets in defluoridation of sodium fluoride and purification of E. coli and Rotavirus. The water being purified was circulated at varying fluxes of 2.0 ml/s to 0.1 ml/s and ambient temperatures of 16.0 °C to 40.0 °C for 0.5 hours to 9.0 hours.

The results show that the DE had high content silica: DE-A had 87.5% silica content, DE-B had 89.6%, and waste had 79.0%. Other metallic oxides were in traces acceptable for the fabrication of membranes. The potter's clay comprised 50.0% silica,28.8% AL2O3, and 7.0% total flux content. The XRD of DE-A, DE-B, and DE-waste powder and membrane showed crystalline structures matching cristobalite, quartz, and wollastonite. The viscous binders were mostly characterized by metallic ions, carbohydrates proteins, and fats. All binders improved the MOR of the membranes ranging from 33% to 175.0% increase. Basella alba was found to form membranes with the highest MOR, with a percentage increase of 175.1%, compared to the effect of the other binder. The diatomaceous membranes were stronger than the Potter’s clay membranes. Carbon activating the membranes improved the mechanical strength but
reduced their flow rates significantly. All the fabricated membranes passed the Escherichia coli test by recording >99.9% efficacy. The result of the Rotavirus in the Enzyme-linked immunoassay ELISA test showed that the membranes fabricated showed an efficiency of
more than 88.5% of defluoridation and Rotavirus removal. The activated carbon had a bulk density of 450.0 kg/m3 and it improved the decontamination of water by around 10.0%. The activated carbon improved the modulus of rupture (MOR) of the DE-waste membrane by 47.8% and the average pore size of the active DE-waste membrane was 18.4 nm. The filtration process was found to be dependent on the contaminant’s size, concentration, and pressure applied to the water during the filtration process. The use of normal pressure only yielded 88.7% and 48.5% in filtering Rotavirus, and NaF respectively. Carbon-activating the membranes improved the efficiency of removing Rotavirus and defluoridation by 9.7% and 8.6% respectively while applying a pressure of 50.0kPa reduced the efficiency of the carbon activated membranes by 4.3% and 5.5% in NaF and Rotavirus respectively. The filtration results of the DE-based membranes fitted best the Complete Blocking and Standard Blocking Filtration models than the Cake and Intermediate blocking models.

It was further found that when ionized water was circulated under the static magnetic field for nine hours, its pH was lowered by 9.7% and that the flux of water in circulation did not affect the purification efficiency. The static magnetic field lowered the replication of Escherichia. Coli and Rotavirus by 9.8% and 7.1% respectively and 14.1% of defluoridation of water was also achieved. Thus, DE-waste together with molasses is good material in fabricating water membranes. The use of the magnetic field in water purification should be complemented by other methods for it to be effective.

Solid waste disposal has grown into a prominent problem in most developing countries arising
from population growth and urbanization in the cities. Municipal authorities who are responsible
in enforcing existing by-laws appear not to have the capacity to tackle the worsening situation of
waste. The purpose of the study was to look at the locals' knowledge, attitudes, and practices
around management of solid waste in Eastleigh, Nairobi County. Choosing Eastleigh as the
study site was largely influenced by the fact that Eastleigh is one of Nairobi's most heavily
populated urban areas. The study's goal was to look into Eastleigh people' s solid waste
management knowledge, attitudes, and practices. The study anticipated that individuals' level of
awareness has little bearing on the management of solid waste in Eastleigh. Further, the study
hypothesized that residents attitude does not affect management of solid waste in Eastleigh. The
study was anchored on behaviour change model which works on the proposition that knowledge
influences attitude which ultimately directs behaviour. Purposive sampling technique was
employed in picking the participants. Selection was dependent accessibility, willingness and
availability to take part in the survey among residents. Three methods were applied in data
collection; questionnaires, key informants and observation. The inhabitants demonstrated an
understanding of the many sorts of garbage produced. Study findings indicated that most of the
waste that was generated was organic with food remains at 43%,fruit and vegetable peelings at
43% while human waste together with old clothing stood at 12.2% and 1.9% respectively.
Inorganic waste was mainly generated from plastics at 40.6% while obsolete cutlery, glass and
metal stood at 18.9% and 5.5% respectively. The prevailing methods of solid waste management
included discarding waste on the roadside and in the drainage systems at 48%, dump pits and
open burning at 43%. Solid waste management was associated with many challenges including
infrequent/irregular waste collection with the majority of the respondents indicating collection was
done once a week at 61%, unregularized dumping, low awareness of its ills and consequent
resident's apathy among residents

coupled Nairobi County Government's casual manner of
handling waste management issues. Unwillingness and avoidance of residents to contract private
garbage collectors was also indicated as a contributing factor to poor waste management with
about 5.1% of the participants indicating they were happy with Services for rubbish collection
and disposal. Participants in the study were found to be informed about several areas of trash
management. However, the citizens' attitude was determined to be negative, despite the fact that
they held knowledge. Majority of the respondents at 82.6% did not think that it was everybody's
responsibility to management waste. Most of the residents interviewed at 48% indicted that they
have never participated in any clean up exercise. The negative attitude was concluded to be
negatively impacting on residents waste management practices . The Nairobi City
County Government was found culpable for the resident's unwillingness to participate in
management of waste due to its poor and irregular collection and eventual disposal of waste,
provision of waste collection bins and other implements. Since residents had knowledge on
various aspects of waste management the study recommended that greater focus should be
geared towards enforcing existing laws on solid waste management.

Nairobi County Government should make every effort to provide private rubbish collection
service providers with a subsidy while also organizing regular and well-coordinated clean-up
efforts.

Hydropower is sustainable and environmentally friendly source of energy worldwide. Driven by streamflow, it is vulnerable to climate change and land use land use change. The hydropower production from the two-existing run-of-river hydropower projects on the Sondu Miriu river are vulnerable to rainfall variability and requires proper understanding of the climate change trends and policies to support sustainable hydropower development and put in place strategies for building resilience for the local communities. The four specific objectives included examining climate change trends and their impacts on hydropower; examining the impacts of both the climate change and the hydropower development projects on the livelihoods of the community living within the basin; identifying appropriate and sustainable strategies for integrating climate change adaptation into hydropower development; and finally reviewing and identifying appropriate policy options for integrating climate change adaptation into hydropower development within the Sondu Miriu river basin. The methodology involved analysis of downscaled climate data from CORDEX for the period from 1950 to 2100, gridded data from Kenya Meteorological department for a period from 2007 to 2018, river flows data from Water Resources Authority for a period from 2007 to 2018 and hydropower output data from KenGen for a period from 2007 to 2018 to examine the climate change trends within the Sondu Miriu River basin and impacts on hydrology and hydropower. Participatory methodologies involving administration of questionnaires at household level and focus group discussions with the local leaders and actors were applied to determine the impacts of climate change and the hydropower development on the community livelihoods within the Sondu Miriu River basin. Review of existing climate change adaptation strategies and policies were carried out to identify appropriate strategies and policy options for integrating climate change adaptation in hydropower developments within the Sondu Miriu river basin. The results indicate that maximum and minimum annual temperature increased by 0.7oC and 0.9oC respectively between 1950 and 2005. Both the maximum and minimum annual temperatures are projected to increase by 1.9oC based on the RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios between 2006 and 2100 within the Sondu Miriu basin. Annual rainfall increased by 74.8 mm between 1950 and 2005. This is projected to increase by 24.7 mm and 117.8 mm based on RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios, respectively. For the period between 2007 and 2018, the observed maximum increased by 50C while the minimum temperatures decreased by 10C. The rainfall decreased by 193.14mm while the mean daily river flows decreased by 0.3 m3/sec annually during the same period. This resulted in the decrease of hydropower production by 8.3 GWh in Sondu Miriu HPP between 2007 and 2018 while the production reduced by 14.18 GWh for Sang’oro HPP between 2012 and 2018. The socioeconomic status of the basin indicates that majority of the households (>59%) are poor and earn below 8 US dollars per day. The employment rate is extremely low with only 22% in formal employment. About
49% of the households still use wood fuel and charcoal as energy sources which is a threat to catchment conservation. No clear climate change adaptation strategies are being implemented within the basin. A framework is needed to implement appropriate climate change adaptation strategies supported by the current existing policies in Kenya. Climate Change act of 2016 created linkage with other existing policies for effective support of integration of climate change adaptation into hydropower development in Sondu Miriu River basin. Understanding climate change trends within Sondu Miriu River basin should guide the planning for hydropower development projects. Strengthening community resilience to climate change impacts is one of the benefits to be derived from the hydropower projects by supporting appropriate adaptation strategies within the existing policy framework.

Keywords: Climate change, Adaptation strategies, Hydropower development, Sondu Miriu River basin.

Geothermal power development promotes the availability and reliance on green energy sources
across the globe thus increasing environmental sustainability through climate change mitigation.
Geothermal development in Olkaria field is part of Kenya’s efforts to transition to middle
income and newly industrialized countries by 2030. However, the projects' installations are an
example of developmental undertakings instigating conflicts with the local community over their
relocation and compensation. These conflicts escalate without proper management, yet their
dynamics are poorly understood. Numerous studies have confirmed the application of mediation
in managing conflicts over natural resources, but the effectiveness of this strategy in Kenya has
not been well established. Also, there is little review of mediation processes to enhance their use
and efficacy. This study sought to assess the role of mediation in resolving conflicts that
emanated from the implementation of Olkaria IV geothermal project. Specifically, the study
evaluated the dynamics of conflict escalation, documented the process of the Olkaria IV
mediation and appraised its role, challenges and lessons in managing the conflicts. Quantitative
and qualitative data were collected through household survey, focus groups and key informant
interviews. The study also utilized archival data. Data collected by questionnaires was analyzed
using descriptive statistics, while NVivo software was used to manage and analyze the
qualitative accounts. Results for this study indicate that the Olkaria IV project conflict was
manifested in different dimensions as follows; the socio-economic (51%), environmental (21%),
cultural (14%) and political (14%). The conflict triggers included the inadequate sharing of
information and PAPs’ participation in decision-making process in regard to project design, the
PAPs’ relocation and the compensation they would be awarded. Conflicts effects on PAPs were

ominous and managed through competition, where PAPs were pressured to pacts (31%), and
avoidance, where they involuntarily conformed (27%). Subsequent dissatisfaction resulted in
unrest that almost disrupted the project, prompting mediation. Mediation helped to neutralize
conflicts between Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen), improved relationships
between KenGen and the PAPs, and among the PAPs, and improved PAPs’ livelihoods through
opportunities within Olkaria IV project and the RAPland. However, the inadequate PAPs’
knowledge, attitude, contribution and practice in the mediation; its protraction, and distrust were
the main issues that encumbered the process. The community representatives lacked a clear
pathway for information dissemination among community members. Mediation lessens suspicion
within the PAPs and increases the community' exposure to different conflict resolution
opportunities. The project planners need to include community participation in design of large
development projects to secure community buy-in, remove unrealistic pledges/expectations and
oil implementation. There is a need for adequate pre-mediation capacity building among
community representatives. A strategy for comprehensive feedback and reporting mechanism
with the community; should be created. Continuous documentation and evaluation of the
mediation process would help construction of best practices for future application. Finally, there
is a need to formulate policies for out-scaling the use of mediation as alternative dispute
resolution mechanisms in implementation of developmental projects in the country.

Green agricultural innovations and technologies rain-water harvesting included have the ability to overcome the water related difficulties experienced by households in rural areas. Rainwater harvesting technologies (RWHTs) have been since utilized for decades. Previous studies have evidenced the benefits of RWHTs to rural livelihoods. However, there remains scanty documentation that can be attributed to effects of RWHTs to rural livelihoods water in Arid and Semi-Arid Lands. The overall objective of this research was to assess the effects of a RWHTs to rural livelihoods. The specific objectives included: to assess the barriers and enablers of utilization of RWHTs among households; to assess the livelihood difference of households with RWHTs and those without; to interrogate the extent to which Machakos County Government implements and integrates RWHTs in its programs, planning and budgeting. The research used both quantitative and qualitative methods. Primary data was obtained by a household survey, focus group discussions and key informants’ interviews. Pretested household questionnaires were used to collect data from a sample of 384 respondents and participants observations were used for data triangulation. Secondary data was obtained through literature review of peer reviewed papers, reports and existing legislations on RWH. Descriptive analyses, tabulations, percentages, inferential statistics (correlation and regression analyses) and thematic analysis were used for data analysis. The study revealed that barriers and enablers did not significantly affect the utilization of RWHTs among the households. RWH had a significant (β= 0.703, t=19.207, p=0.000<0.05) impact on household livelihoods. In addition, incentives from the County Government of Machakos encouraged RWHTs. Correlation analysis outcomes showed a positive but weak correlation on barriers (costs and a lack of expertise on the utilization of these technologies) and enablers (incentives, sensitizations and funding) had an impact on household livelihoods. Regression assessment showed that barriers and enablers had a confident but statistically insignificant effect (β= 0.036, t=0.700, p=0.484>0.05) on the influence on household livelihoods but on the other hand, RWHTs had a positive and significant effect on the influence on household livelihoods. Moreover, integration of RWHTs in County Development Agenda had enhanced household livelihoods. The findings indicated that overall, a composite mean of 4.04 and a standard deviation of 0.699 of the respondents agreed that incentives from the county government significantly promoted RWHTs. This was confirmed by a positively strong and significant correlation (β= 0.703, t=19.207, p=0.000<0.05) between the integration of RWHT in the county development agenda and the impact on household livelihoods Results of this survey indicate that RWHTs are financed mostly by household heads and county government initiatives have not been adequately felt. There is a strong indication from the study that RWHTs had a significant influence on the impact on household livelihoods. To ensure the sustainability of RWHTs, the study recommended that the County Government of Machakos and other counties needed to intensify campaigns on RWH and incentivize households to utilize these technologies. Additionally, there is a need to strengthen funding and sensitization on the best technologies to enhance water harvesting. To ensure sustainability of RWHTs, the study recommends that Machakos County Government need to give continuous support, strengthen stakeholder and community participation in water management practices.

Abstract:

Yam (Dioscorea spp.) is an economically important crop grown in the tropical and subtropical regions, producing tuberous roots that serve as a staple food, an income source, and an excellent source of various pharmaceutical precursors. Yam production is constrained by disease and pest infestations and a range of abiotic stresses. Genetic improvement can significantly mitigate these challenges, improve productivity, expand the yam markets, and increase economic gains. However, several intrinsic attributes of the crop have curtailed progress in yam breeding. Advanced genetic engineering such as genome editing by sequence-specific nucleases has emerged as complementary approaches to conventional breeding techniques. Mainly, the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/CRISPR-associated protein (CRISPR/Cas) system for genome editing has provided robust platforms for gene function analysis and crop improvement in the post-genomic era. Despite its significance, research towards improving the yam species remains under-represented compared to other staple tuber crops such as cassava and sweet potato. Thus, it is critical to explore avenues for increasing the genetic gains from this under-exploited crop. The present review focuses on the progress and prospects for applying the CRISPR/Cas technology for yam improvement. The study elaborates on the currently available CRISPR/Cas tool for yam genome engineering and explores the potential applications of this toolkit in mitigating the various challenges encountered in yam production and consumption. Furthermore, we have delved into the challenges associated with this technology and the improvements made to minimize these challenges. The insights presented herein provide a guide for yam improvement to increase genetic gains from this under-researched and under-utilized resource.

Abstract: 

We aimed to identify and explore the priority psychosocial considerations for the gerontechnology design for Kenyan geriatrics. Our informants were a convenience sample of eight older adults (female = 4, age range 65 years to 78 years; and males = 4, age range 70 years to 78years) from an assisted living facility. We interviewed them on their regular mobile phone usage to better understand the factors affecting the usage of modern technology by older Kenyan persons. Thematic analysis of the data yielded two themes categorised as physical and psychosocial factors. Physical factors related to usability and user experience of older persons when using mobile phones. Psychosocial factors related to the emotional design experienced by older people when using mobile phones. These findings suggest a need to blend technology-centred and psychosocial factors for interactive mobile interfaces designed for developing country geriatrics.

Abstract:

Community adaptation to the negative impacts of climate change benefits from an analysis of both the trends in climate variables and people’s perception of climate change. This paper contends that members of the local community have observed changes in temperature and rainfall patterns and that these perceptions can be positively correlated with meteorological records. This is particularly useful for remote regions like Lamu whereby access to weather data is spatially and temporally challenged. Linear trend analysis is employed to describe the change in temperature and rainfall in Lamu using monthly data obtained from the Kenya Meteorological Department (KMD) for the period 1974–2014. To determine local perceptions and understanding of the trends, results from a household survey are presented. Significant warming trends have been observed in the study area over the period 1974–2014. This warming is attributed to a rise in maximum temperatures. In contrast to temperature, a clear picture of the rainfall trend has not emerged. Perceptions of the local community closely match the findings on temperature, with majority of the community identifying a rise in temperature over the same period. The findings suggest that the process of validating community perceptions of trends with historical meteorological data analysis can promote adaptation planning that is inclusive and responsive to local experiences