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The Evolution of Kenya’s land policy, legal framework and its impact on pastoralism in Kajiado, Kenya
(Strathmore University, 2025) Mohamed, A. A.
The rise in population globally, the trend towards rapid urbanization, centralisation of land tenure, establishment of strict borders between previously open territories have all challenged the way of life for pastoralists around the world. These pose challenges to human’s connection to the drylands in a way that efficiently protects ecosystems, biodiversity and manages low fertility soils. In many countries, pastoralists are a large portion of the national population, often ethnic minorities numbering between 100 and 200 million people globally (IUCN, 2020). In this dissertation, I explore the possibilities within pastoral land use and management in Kajiado County of Kenya, for the purpose of shaping legislation and policies that capture the experiences and needs of pastoralists. This dissertation intends to: (1) undertake an evaluative study of the state of pastoralism in Kajiado, outlining its problems and prospects; (2) analyze the policy and legal land tenure system at the national and county level; and (3) determine the consequences of the examined policy frameworks on the future of pastoralism. Recognizing the effects of colonial and post-independence land policies on pastoralists, the study offers cross-generational approaches to realign policy to pastoralists lived realities and proposes frameworks that other ASALs could emulate. A qualitative research design was employed. Data were collected through ten semi-structured interviews (n = 10) and one focus group discussion involving ten participants (n = 10), all purposively selected from different sub-counties to reflect diverse pastoralist practices. Participants were selected based on geography, herd size, and experience with land access challenges. Thematic analysis, guided by the Gioia methodology, was applied to synthesize insights from narratives into conceptual patterns using both manual coding and Atlas.Ti software. Findings indicate a significant transformation in pastoral systems. Mobility is declining due to land fragmentation, fencing, and urban encroachment. Pastoralists are shifting from full nomadism to seasonal or semi-sedentary forms. Environmental stress—especially prolonged droughts—has contributed to herd size reduction and forced diversification into farming and informal trade. Digital tools, including mobile phones and climate-monitoring applications, are increasingly used for market access and pasture planning, although access is uneven. The study also highlights the tension between customary tenure systems and formal land governance. While communal grazing lands remain central to pastoralist survival, policies promoting private land titles have disrupted shared access. These institutional and ecological constraints have led to economic instability, rising land-related conflicts, and limited access to markets. The study concludes that pastoralism remains ecologically viable and socially relevant in Kajiado County, but its sustainability depends on policy reform and institutional inclusion. Legal recognition of communal grazing lands, formalization of migratory corridors, and direct participation of pastoralists in land governance are critical.
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Appraisal of 100% school transition in Kenya: challenges and policy options
(Strathmore University, 2025) Njeru, A. M.
This study draws important lessons from international best practices to inform Kenya’s 100% school transition policy. Key models include Rwanda’s needs-based funding mechanism, Saudi Arabia’s Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) for infrastructure expansion, New Zealand’s ICT-driven education monitoring system, and Brazil’s integration of technology in learning. These cases provide actionable insights for improving policy implementation, equity, and sustainability in Kenya’s context. The study was guided by three main objectives: to assess the key factors hindering 100 percent school transition in Kenya; to appraise the transition policy by identifying issues emerging from its implementation; and to draw lessons from international best practices to inform policy improvement. A descriptive qualitative research design was adopted to enable in-depth exploration of stakeholder experiences and policy dynamics. Using purposive sampling, 30 participants were selected from across Kenya’s former eight administrative regions. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed thematically to identify patterns, trends, and policy gaps. Findings reveal that the effectiveness of Kenya’s transition policy is undermined by weak implementation frameworks, including the absence of a structured student tracking system and delays in financial disbursements. Governance challenges, high student-teacher ratios, inadequate professional development, and inequitable deployment of teachers further exacerbate the problem. Additionally, external environmental and socio-economic factors—such as insecurity, climate disruptions, and poverty—disproportionately impact vulnerable communities, making full transition difficult to achieve. The study concludes that while the 100% transition policy reflects a commendable commitment to universal secondary education, its long-term success depends on strategic reforms. These include implementing a real-time education data system, adopting a data-driven teacher deployment strategy with rural incentives, and expanding infrastructure through innovative financing mechanisms like PPPs. Without such reforms, the policy risks becoming a numerical success with limited educational quality or equity.
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Social innovation practices, entrepreneurial ecosystems and sustainable performance of social enterprises in Kenya
(Strathmore University, 2025) Kyaka, C. M.
Social enterprises in Kenya face growth and sustainable performance challenges with more than 50% not attaining their third birthday after inception. Besides, most social enterprises lack involvement of beneficiaries or stakeholders in decision-making, fail to serve the intended target population or marginalized groups and engage in activities that result in excessive waste production, energy consumption, or water usage without efforts to reduce or offset these negative impacts. The purpose of the research was to determine the influence of social innovation on the sustainable performance of social enterprises in Kenya. The study’s objectives were to examine the influence of co-creation, impact investing, community-led development, and open innovation on the sustainable performance of social enterprises in Nairobi, Kenya. The research also assessed the moderating influence of entrepreneurial ecosystems on the association between social innovation practices and the sustainable performance of social enterprises in Nairobi, Kenya. The research was based on the social innovations’ theory, cluster theory and triple bottom-line framework. This study used the post-positivism philosophy and a quantitative research design which values scope, statistical description, and generalization. The population for this study was 51,000 social enterprises in Nairobi Kenya and a sample of 394 enterprises selected using quota sampling. Data was gathered during the months of March and April 2025 using a questionnaire and analysis was through descriptive statistics, correlation, and ordinal regression analysis. The research findings determined that the main social innovations practices by social enterprises in Nairobi Kenya were impact investing, community led development, open-innovation, co-creation, and partnerships. Those that were rarely practiced included behavioural insights, collaborative consumption. crowdfunding and crowdsourcing. The findings also determined that co-creation, impact investing, community-led development and open innovation have a significant effect on the sustainable performance of social enterprises in Nairobi, Kenya. The study however, determined that entrepreneurial ecosystems have no significant moderating influence on the link between social innovation practices and the sustainable performance of social enterprises in Nairobi, Kenya. The study recommends to management in social enterprises to enhance their interaction with universities, research labs, and even rivals. Further, social enterprises should keep emphasising communities as the centre of their creations by including beneficiaries in the design and execution of solutions to guarantee relevance and ownership but also foster long-term sustainability and confidence inside the society. For policymakers, the study recommends that they should have programs for capacity-building that should concentrate on improving localised development plans and participative innovation. Further a policy framework should support knowledge sharing platforms with regular forums, innovation centres, and digital platforms which help to promote peer learning, copy-on-demand of successful models, and cross-sector alliances.
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Determinants of food security among pastoralist communities in Kenya: the case study of Samburu County
(Strathmore University, 2025) Lesamana, D. N.
Food security remains a critical challenge among pastoralist communities in Kenya’s arid and semi- arid lands (ASALs), where households heavily depended on livestock and faced recurrent climate shocks. This study investigated the determinants of food security among pastoralist households in Samburu County, focusing on three thematic domains: animal productivity, socio-economic characteristics and climate change adaptation strategies. Guided by the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework and grounded in a positivist philosophy, the study employed a cross-sectional survey design and quantitative methodology. Data were collected from 502 households using structured questionnaires and analyzed through descriptive statistics and multinomial logistic regression. The findings revealed that only 13.7% of households were food secure, while 54.6% were moderately food insecure and 31.7% were severely food insecure. Livestock ownership and productivity emerged as the most influential predictors. Each additional animal increased the probability of a household being food secure by 8.8%, while higher production of livestock by-products (especially milk) and participation in breeding practices significantly improved food security outcomes. Although 98.8% of households reported access to veterinary services, less than 40% engaged in feed production or preservation, exposing them to seasonal shortages and limiting their adaptive capacity. Socio-economic factors, including household asset value, income from livestock sales and land size, were positively associated with food security. However, 85.4% of household heads were uneducated and while education was intuitively important, it was not a statistically significant predictor in the regression model. Climate change adaptation practices were widespread but uneven. While 91.8% of households perceived long-term climate changes and nearly half experienced two or more droughts in the past five years, formal tools such as early warning systems (7.8%) and insurance (2.6%) were scarcely adopted. Nonetheless, the adoption of multiple adaptation strategies had a cumulative effect—each additional strategy increased the probability of food security by 33%. The study recommended expanding climate-smart extension services through community-based organizations, promoting low- literacy communication methods, establishing pastoralist-focused SACCOs to enhance financial inclusion, leveraging mobile technology for climate and market information and implementing targeted food and nutrition interventions during the lean season from March to July. Further research was suggested in three key areas: the role and effectiveness of extension services in influencing adaptive behaviors; the barriers to uptake of early warning systems and trust in institutional information; and the economic viability of adaptation strategies through cost-benefit analysis.
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Effect of technology adoption on the sustainable competitive advantage of commercial banks in Kenya
(Strathmore University, 2025) Muriuki, C. M.
The banking industry had been grappling with a dynamic landscape characterized by rapid technological advancements, regulatory changes, and evolving customer preferences. The proliferation of fintech innovations and advancements in digital technologies had been transforming the banking landscape, compelling banks to adapt and incorporate digital solutions to remain relevant and competitive. The objective of the study was to determine the effect of technology adoption capabilities on the sustainable competitive advantage of commercial banks in Kenya. The specific objectives were to investigate the impact of automation on sustainable competitive advantage of commercial banks in Kenya, to establish the impact of alternative channels on sustainable competitive advantage of commercial banks in Kenya, to determine the impact of optimization of Human Capital on sustainable competitive advantage of commercial banks in Kenya and to determine the impact of customer relationship management on sustainable competitive advantage of commercial banks in Kenya. The study was anchored on four theories: resource dependency theory, technology adoption theory, expectation disconfirmation theory, and Porter’s theory of competitive advantage. Furthermore, the study was framed within the pragmatist point of view, employing a descriptive research design to elucidate the correlation between the variables under investigation. The population under scrutiny encompassed the 39 commercial banks operational in Kenya as of December 2023. Data collection hinged upon a semi-structured questionnaire, which was administered to two respondents from each bank. The targeted participants consisted of managers within the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and Business Development departments or individuals occupying analogous roles. The findings revealed that the automation of the bank processes enhances efficiency, reduces costs, and improves service delivery, while alternative banking channels such as mobile and internet banking increase accessibility and customer convenience. In relation to the role of adopting technology in the bank alternative channels, the findings reveal that it significantly enhances sustainable competitive advantage by increasing accessibility of the bank products, improves customer engagement, and facilitate personalized financial services. In relation to the technology adoption of the human capital function, the findings reveal that the bank operations are optimized because it improves the organization training and talent management, which in turn enhances productivity and innovation, fosters customer loyalty and brand reputation. Technology adoption in the CRM technologies was found to enhance the organizations data analytics capabilities, which in turn led to improved customer satisfaction, loyalty, and long- term business growth. The study underscores the need for banks to integrate technology adoption with digital transformation and regulatory compliance to maximize competitiveness. In regard to the digitalization of customer It also highlights policy implications, emphasizing the role of regulators in fostering a supportive environment for financial innovation. By aligning with the resource-based view (RBV) theory, this research contributes to existing knowledge on technology-driven competitiveness in the banking sector, offering insights for scholars, industry practitioners, and policymakers. Key words: Sustainable competitive advantage; Alternative channels, automation, human capital