Abstract

Employees are an integral part and the lifeblood of any corporate entity. They play a crucial function in the existence of a corporate entity. They have immense stake in its continued existence and its sound financial health for purposes of keeping their jobs. Their jobs are a source of livelihood to them. The financial ill-health or insolvency of their employer poses a risk to their jobs. COVID-19 exacerbated the risk of losing jobs. Insolvency of the corporate employer, causes employees to lose their jobs and entitlements and to be condemned to abject poverty. This is largely because developing countries like Kenya have weak social welfare programmes to support the unemployed. Over the years, insolvency law has developed with the aim of addressing the interests of stakeholders in insolvency. The development of the law has been informed by the proceduralist and traditionalist theories discussed in chapter 2. The traditionalist theory informed the development of the law to take care of interests of all stakeholders in corporate insolvency including employees. The laws of Kenya, discussed in chapter three, have structures whose intention is to protect employees in the wake of insolvency of their corporate employer. These include preferential treatment of a portion of their entitlement, providing a guarantee payment under the National Social Security Fund and corporate rescue through administration. Despite the legal regime providing some measure of protection to employees, the mechanisms are not sufficient to protect employee entitlements which exist prior to insolvency. These laws can be improved to effectively and adequately protect employee rights in corporate insolvency. In chapter four, this research discusses lessons from other jurisdictions on effectively and meaningfully protecting the interests of employees in corporate insolvency. In chapter five, this research recommends lessons from other jurisdictions to be adopted in Kenya, together with some amendments to the laws of Kenya to further buttress the protection of employees in corporate insolvency.

Land is the main platform for livelihood sourcing for many communities in Sub Saharan Africa. It is however becoming scarce owing to many factors that include the growing human population, land degradation and climate change. Pastoralism is an important livelihood source for many, but land scarcity and tenure insecurity are threatening its viability as a livelihood source. Pastoral communities resource use and governance display unique characteristics that complicate tenure formalization. Policy makers are thus faced with a huge task of drafting policies that take this uniqueness into consideration. This study was conducted in Dirre grazing unit of the Borana zone in southern Ethiopia. The objectives were to assess the implications of securing land tenure by formalizing land rights at different scales and how this interacts with socio economic drivers that shape land use in pastoral systems. It also assessed the implications of communal land rights formalization on such issues and rangeland ecology, livestock and livelihoods. The methodology applied a scenario development approach with key informant interviews and focus group discussions. It also employed a household survey with 187 households and coupled human-ecosystem simulation modelling approach was used with SAVANNA an ecosystem model and DECUMA an agentbased model. The data was analysed using multiple analysis techniques that includes the Analytical Hierarchal Analysis (AHP) of the multi criteria decision analysis tool and a two-tailed t-test was used to compare means at 95% confidence level. The findings show that smaller scale certification would have more advantages, but pastoralists preferred larger scale which despite its challenges, is the best for maintaining flexible mobility and for allowing implementation of seasonal grazing management. Pastoralists response showed that land certification will secure land rights, enable better management of rangelands, and improve livestock-based livelihoods. However, the findings also suggest that certification will not necessarily reverse individualization and the ongoing shift in livelihoods toward agropastoralism. From the simulation modelling, vegetation layers respond differently to the grazing management scenarios. The unpalatable grass levels rise regardless of grazing management, which is potentially a sign of increased degradation. When it is a very low rainfall year, grazing management does not have as many benefits, as everything becomes dry and stressed. Both grazing scenarios had marginal effects on woody biomass and population for palatable species for about half the simulation time for palatable woody species. The study suggests the need for multi-pronged approaches and various support mechanisms when implementing a formal land tenure system in these areas as the scale of operation matters. Secondly, it is concluded that, while strengthening communal tenure for pastoralists is key, the drivers toward individualization and adoption of crop agriculture are such that implementing a formal communal land tenure system will not always in itself be sufficient to stem individualization. The reasons for livelihood transition go beyond land tenure security. Thirdly, as the land certification program in pastoral areas moves forward, it should aim at enhancing pastoralist livelihoods and their capacity to manage rangelands, halt degradation and allow the rangelands to recover to be able to sustain livestock production for longer. There is need to couple planned grazing with intensive rangeland reclamation, and management efforts, intensify livestock production through, cattle fattening, or diversify into other livelihood activities. Key words: land rights, tenure security, agropastoralism, modelling, grazing access, scale, pastoralists. livelihoods, rangelands

Abstract

Egerton University Abstract: The introduction of government financial instructions and fees guidelines in public secondary schools is aimed at enabling schools attain better efficiency in the management of the available scarce financial resources. However, little information exists on the actual impact and adherence to these instructions, and the resultant coping mechanism adopted by public secondary schools in the country. This study sought to evaluate the impact of government instructions on financial management in public secondary schools. The study adopted an ex post facto research design. It targeted all the head teachers of the 18 public secondary schools within Nakuru municipality. Primary data was collected through administration of a structured questionnaire to the school head teachers. The collected data were processed and analyzed descriptively using percentage, frequencies and tables with the aid of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 1 1.5 for windows. The study finds that government financial management instructions had limited the power of the schools to arbitrarily determine a.nd control the financing of physical facilities. The instructions regulated investment activities in the schools to avoid wastage of resources, and ensure high returns and accountability. The government instructions had well regulated staff training in the schools to match their needs and resources. The instructions had improved management, transparency and accountability in schools‘ recurrent expenditures. Lack of adequate resources and flexibility are the major challenges to the implementation of government financial management instructions and fees guidelines in the schools. Based on the above findings, the study recommends that there is a need to properly educate and train the head teachers (schools’ chief executives) on the importance and implementation of government financial management instructions and fees guidelines. All schools should engage in income generating activities to supplement their limited financial resources in order to effectively implement the government instructions. Finally, the government instructions are supposed to be flexible in order to take into account the differentiation amongst schools.

The study aimed to assess the impact of gross loan portfolio on the value of Kenyan commercial banks. Contextually, it prioritized banks listed at NSE. It set out specific variables such as; real estate loans, retail and personal, enterprise and trade loans, and agricultural loans. The assessment provided a diligent inquiry into research questions, bridging the research gap. Notably, the period of study spanned from 2017-2021. In addition, the population entailed eleven registered listed commercial banks. Panel data on listed commercial banks were collected across five years to investigate the connection between gross loan portfolio and bank value. The study was executed with the assistance and reliance on secondary cross-sectional panel data design. Data was obtained from the respective listed kenyan banks annual and published statements, historical data from the Nairobi securities exchange as well as Central Bank. Quantitative techniques were employed in data analysis; collected data was tabulated and presented to make easy to understand and interpret. SPSS statistical analysis software was used in this research to manipulate the data and visualize the results. This ANOVA p-value of 0.05 shows that the model was statistically significant. The regression analysis showed a 56.4% correlation among the variables that were under study however, only retail and personal loans alongside trade and enterprise loans had a significant relationship with bank value. The model summary also shows that 31.8% variation in banks' value was caused by agricultural , Real estate , enterprise and trade loans and retail and personal loans. It is worth emphasizing that real estate loans, retail and personal loans, agricultural loans, and enterprise and trade loans played a pivotal role in the bank's value. The evaluation of the loan diversification portfolio recommends strengthening of policies that increase the performance of loans and sealing loopholes that create avenues for defaults. Stressing on the need for a diversification strategy to avoid the negative association of bad loans on value of the bank. Finally, in a replicate study addition of other predictor variables, moderating and intervening variables can spearhead the conclusive findings.

Abstract

We looked into Kenyan banks' efficiency and their determinants since 2014 to 2019. To find the efficiency of these banks, we employed Data Envelopment Analysis. In the following stage, a probit model was employed to assess the relationship of commercial banks' efficiency scores with interest rate, bank size, credit risk and liquidity ratio. The study's empirical findings show that interest rate, bank size and liquidity ratio have a positive relationship with banks being efficient or on the efficiency frontier. Larger banks, those charging a higher interest rate and those with high liquidity ratios are likely to be the most efficient in their peer group.

Building Information Modelling (BIM) is a technology and a process that has brought changes in the construction procurement system. Kenya lacks contractual guidelines on implementation of BIM, and this makes the adoption of BIM slow and difficult. Previous research on BIM has left a gap in contractual relationships, roles and resulting risks. The purpose of this study was to investigate how contractual roles and responsibilities are affected by BIM in relation to systems and structures. The objectives were to assess BIM adoption, determine underlying components in its adoption, investigate influence of BIM on Engineering Contract Management (ECM) in Nairobi, Kenya and to formulate a BIM adoption and implementation framework. The research was designed as a survey. It targeted an individual within eight strata that comprised of Civil Engineers, Construction Project Managers, Architects, Quantity Surveyors, Mechanical Engineers, Electrical Engineers, Contractors and Facility Managers. Data were collected through self-administered questionnaires with a sample size of 371 and in-depth interviews comprising of 10 knowledgeable persons. Descriptive analysis, correlation analysis, regression analysis and Exploratory Factor Analysis techniques were used to analyse quantitative data. Qualitative data were analyzed thematically. It emerged that BIM adoption level was at 56.6% and shallow understanding of BIM capabilities and the Traditional Procurement System (TPS) remain a barrier to its adoption and implementation. It was also established that BIM improves ECM; that is when time, cost, quality, collaboration and return on investment improve, ECM becomes effective and efficient. The underlying factors found in BIM and ECM relationship were legal implications, awareness and knowledge, efficiency, versatility, mandate and leadership, and competitiveness. Further, the study found out that BIM influence on ECM demands for establishment of standards, guidelines and legal framework which can be achieved by amending the Public Procurement Act. BIM needs a new system to perform in because it conflicts with the traditional system of procurement. The knowledge gained will be important to the construction industry professionals, clients, students, and the government towards the efforts of BIM adoption and implementation in Kenya. The study formulated a BIM adoption and implementation framework.

Spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) are the germline stem cells responsible for continuous spermatogenesis. The continuous production of spermatozoa relies on the capacity of SSCs to undergo self-renewal to maintain a reservoir for future production. SSC has been previously isolated from testes and transplanted to homologous recipients, successfully re-establishing donor-derived spermatogenesis. This unique characteristic of SSC can be exploited as a reproductive tool in livestock production to propagate desirable genetics through SSC transplantation to surrogate sires. However, the initial population of SSC isolated from the testis is usually low; therefore, there is a need to optimize methodologies for their in vitro propagation to generate enough numbers for their use in these reproductive technologies. Surrogate sires are ideal recipients for SSC transplantation since they do not possess an endogenous germline layer, but they have functional somatic cell structural support. The aim of the current study was (a) to do Systematic review of literature for in vitro culture of spermatogonial stem cells (SSC) and their applications in livestock species, (b) to establish long-term SSC culture system for indigenous Galla goats in Kenya and characterize the SSC through morphology, immunochemistry, and molecular markers, (c) to optimize gene transfection protocols for the in vitro cultured SSC and (d) to transfer (transplant) SSC to germline intact prepubertal bucks and evaluate their ability to colonize the recipient seminiferous tubules. The literature search on spermatogonial stem cell culture was performed. Relevant data were screened and extracted. There was limited data on in vitro culture of SSC from goats and also none of the studies had been done on livestock in Africa. The SSC was isolated from prepubertal goat testes via a two-step enzymatic digestion method followed by testicular cell enrichment for SSC through a multiparameter selection approach. The isolated SSC had a viability mean of 77.4 ± 1.2 %. The multiparameter selection yielded a population of cells enriched for SSC with higher in vitro colony formation, cells of uniform size, cultures with very few somatic cells, and a majority (69.20 ± 1.0 %) of the cells stained positive for promyelocytic leukaemia zinc finger factor (PLZF), which is a specific SSC marker to ascertain their stem status through immunocytochemistry and real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). The single enriched procedure of differential plating on gelatin-coated plates results in about 25.62±1.76% cell population of PLZF-staining cells. The study demonstrated a thriving goat SSC culture and proliferation on a feeder-free system with goat fetal fibroblasts (GFF) pre-conditioned Stempro medium for 45 days. Notably, the immunostaining of the feeder-free cultured SSC germ cell clumps invariably expressed PLZF staining, which indicated maintenance of undifferentiated spermatogonial phenotype through immunochemistry and RT-PCR. The goat SSC culture also exhibited typical germ cell clump morphology similar to what has previously been reported in rodent SSC. The cultured SSC were transfected with enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP) reporter gene plasmid bound to cytomegalovirus (CMV) promoter and delivered to the cell cytosol through lipofectamine reagents and electroporation. The use of Lipofectamine™ stem reagent carrier had a higher number of SSC colonies expressing the eGFP gene (25.25%) compared to Lipofectamine™ 2000 carrier molecule (22.25%). Electroporation of the SSC resulted in the highest transfection efficiency of 15% with a viability rate of 50% cells. The high voltage of electroporation resulted in SSC death. The two transfection methods yielded promising results for utilizing the techniques for gene transfer of genetic material into goat SSC. However, further studies are required to modify the parameters and transfection conditions for improvement of the overall transfection efficiency and the viability of cells after transfection. The SSC are the only cells with the ability to migrate to the basement membrane of the seminiferous tubules and colonize the membrane through the occupation of stem cell niches. An enriched population of cultured and eGFP transfected SSC has successfully been transplanted to prepubertal buck testes through mediastinum testis in an ultrasound-guided injection. The presence of eGFP-expressing cells in seminiferous tubules of recipient testis following transplantation in prepubertal bucks indicates that the ultrasound-guided transplantation of donor cells was successful, but whether these cells would persist long enough to colonize seminiferous tubules and donor-derived genotype was not evaluated. There was no inflammatory reaction or infection to transplantation of SSC in recipient bucks. The establishment of a robust long-term culture system for SSC can unlock possibilities of their use for transplantation technology in livestock production and a generation of transgenic animals. In conclusion, the study was the first report of a combined serum-free feeder-free in vitro culture system of goat SSC. The devised goat SSC culture system also marks the first report of culturing SSC in livestock in Africa. The established conditions can be used as a benchmark for further studies in the long-term expansion of goat SSC that will provide enough numbers for SSC application in transgenesis and surrogate sire breeding technology. The established protocols for transfection parameters, contribute significantly to knowledge of successful gene manipulation of SSC in generating transgenic animals with better traits for disease resistance, fertility, or production.