International Journal of Professional Practice

Influence of Digital Loan Applications on Loan Performance of Microfinance Banks in Kenya

2026-05-15T18:55:09+00:00

Microfinance banks play a critical role in promoting financial inclusion by serving underserved populations. However, the sector continues to experience high levels of non-performing loans, which stood at 32.9% as of 30 June 2023. This has prompted many microfinance banks to adopt digital innovations, such as digital loan applications, to improve loan performance. The objective of this study was to examine the influence of digital loan applications on the loan performance of microfinance banks in Kenya. The study adopted an ex post facto research design guided by the pragmatism research philosophy. The target population comprised 348 loan officers drawn from the 13 licensed microfinance banks in Kenya. Proportionate stratified sampling was used to determine the sample size. Both primary and secondary data were utilized in the study. Primary data were collected using semi-structured questionnaires, while qualitative data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics with the aid of SPSS version 28. Descriptive statistics included means and standard deviations, whereas inferential statistics comprised Pearson correlation and logistic regression analysis. The findings revealed that digital loan applications had a strong and statistically significant positive relationship with loan performance (r = 0.695, p < 0.05). Regression results further established that digital loan applications significantly and positively influenced loan performance among microfinance banks in Kenya (β = 3.884, p < 0.05), leading to the rejection of the null hypothesis. Qualitative findings indicated that the ease of access to digital lending increases the risk of borrower over-indebtedness, as clients often obtain multiple loans from different platforms with minimal assessment of repayment capacity, thereby increasing default rates. The study recommends that microfinance banks enhance their digital loan platforms to support seamless applications, faster approvals, timely disbursements, user-friendly interfaces, and accessible customer support services.

Determinants of Animal Manure Adoption Among Smallholder Farmers in Garbatulla Sub-County, Isiolo County, Kenya

2026-07-08T20:11:47+00:00

Animal manure is an important component of sustainable soil fertility management, yet its adoption among smallholder farmers remains limited in many arid and semi-arid regions of Kenya. This study investigated the determinants of animal manure adoption among smallholder farmers in Garbatulla Sub-County, Isiolo County, Kenya. A cross-sectional mixed-methods design was employed, involving 202 randomly selected farmers. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression, while qualitative data from key informant interviews and focus group discussions were analyzed thematically. The findings revealed that farm location and pesticide use were significant determinants of animal manure adoption, whereas socio-demographic factors such as age, gender, education, household size, and farm size did not significantly influence adoption decisions. Qualitative findings further identified transportation costs, labor requirements, and limited extension support as key barriers to effective manure utilization. The study concludes that improving access to manure resources, strengthening agricultural extension services, promoting integrated crop–livestock farming, and implementing location-specific interventions are essential for increasing adoption of animal manure. These measures will enhance sustainable soil fertility management, improve agricultural productivity, and contribute to climate-smart agriculture and food security in Kenya's arid and semi-arid regions.

The Impact of Records Management Procedures on Service Delivery at Rift Valley Institute of Science and Technology, Kenya

2026-07-09T20:12:29+00:00

Technical colleges are vital for bridging global workforce skills gaps. This paper evaluates how records management practices impact service delivery within technical institutes in Nakuru County. This study investigates the impact of records management procedures on service delivery in technical colleges, addressing a critical issue of efficiency and effectiveness in educational services. Outdated equipment, poor facilities, and inefficient records management cause declining student satisfaction and institutional performance. The objectives were to assess the effects of policy development and implementation, as well as electronic records management, on service delivery. Conducted over three months, the study utilised a descriptive research design to comprehensively document and analyse current practices and their impacts. This study targeted 1,750 respondents at the Rift Valley Institute of Science and Technology, comprising 300 administrative staff, 250 academic staff, 1,000 students, and 200 support staff. Stratified random sampling was applied to ensure representation of each category, with a 10% proportionate allocation from every stratum, resulting in a sample size of 175 respondents. Primary data was gathered using a single, standardized questionnaire featuring a 5-point Likert scale, designed around universal user-experience benchmarks to ensure applicability across all respondent categories. Instrument validity was established via content and expert judgment, while reliability was verified using Cronbach’s Alpha. Data from the main study were analyzed using SPSS Version 25.0, descriptive statistics, ANOVA, and multiple linear regression to examine the influence of records management practices on institutional service delivery. The study recommended the need for technical colleges to introduce continuous training and awareness programs to educate the students and staff on ERM and RMP to enhance service delivery in the institution. Additionally, RVIST should put adequate measures to promote equality in service delivery between both genders.

Evaluation of the Performance of the Small Ruminant Industry in Mandera County, Kenya

2026-07-09T20:12:45+00:00

Small ruminant production is a key component of pastoral livelihoods and food security in Mandera County, Kenya. This study investigated disease occurrence, veterinary delivery, climate impacts, market integration, and value chain constraints affecting Mandera County's small ruminant industry to fill a gap in integrated evidence. Using a mixed-methods cross-sectional design, researchers combined structured surveys of 370 pastoralist households across six sub-counties, six focus group discussions, six key informant interviews with veterinary and extension officers, and a review of 2022–2024 climate records. Regression analysis, Pearson correlation, one-way ANOVA and thematic analysis were applied. Reported disease occurrence was high, with 68.1% of respondents reporting PPR in goat herds and 71.9% in sheep flocks, while 41.9% reported CCPP occurrence in goats. Veterinary service access was limited, with only 31.9% of pastoralists reporting regular access, due to geographical barriers (60.8% living beyond 15 km) and financial constraints (81.9% reporting services as unaffordable). Climate variability impacts were substantial, with 89.0% of respondents reporting changes, particularly increased drought frequency (67.0%) and unpredictable rainfall (45.0%), leading to reduced herd sizes (72.0%) and high mortality (40.0%). Market integration was constrained by dominant local market channels (65.1%), information asymmetries and limited value addition (72.0%). Regression analysis accounted for 79.4% of the variation in small ruminant industry performance (R² = 0.794, Adjusted R² = 0.780, p < 0.001), identifying drought frequency (β = -0.387, p < 0.001), reported PPR occurrence (β = -0.245, p < 0.001) and market access (β = 0.275, p < 0.001) as the strongest predictors. Disease burden, inadequate veterinary services, climate stress and market integration constraints are significantly associated with reduced industry performance in Mandera County. The study recommends establishing community-based animal health worker systems, implementing climate-resilient feeding strategies and developing pastoralist cooperatives for improved market integration.

SVM Model with Hybrid Parameter Tuning Strategy for Colon Cancer Classification in Nairobi County

2026-07-09T20:12:14+00:00

Colon cancer remains one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide, with recent evidence pointing to a rising incidence in Nairobi County, Kenya. This study designs and evaluates a region-specific Support Vector Machine (SVM) classification model with a hybrid parameter-tuning algorithm for accurate colon cancer diagnosis in Kenyan hospitals. The work addresses diagnostic delays driven by a shortage of pathologists, lengthy manual slide reviews, and limited access to advanced procedures. Using the HIPAA-compliant LC25000 histopathological image dataset, we applied feature selection, normalization, and image augmentation to improve model robustness. Our two-stage hybrid hyperparameter-tuning strategy first performed a coarse Grid Search (C ∈ {0.1, 1, 10, 100}, γ ∈ {10⁻⁶, 10⁻⁵, 10⁻⁴}) followed by a Random Search (C ∈ [0.01, 100], γ ∈ [10⁻⁷, 10⁻⁵]) on the intersection of the top 10% configurations, enabling dense sampling of promising ranges. This approach leveraged SVM strengths in handling small, high-dimensional datasets, applying robust regularization, and weighting classes to address imbalance while reducing cross-validation variance by 15–20%. Compared to standalone grid and Random Search methods, the hybrid model achieved 83.0% accuracy (improvements of 1.5% and 2.0%), an F1-score of 82.4%, malignant recall of 81.0%, and benign precision of 84.0%. In practice, these gains translate to dozens more correctly classified slides per 4,000, representing an impactful improvement for resource-limited clinics in Nairobi. At Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH), the SVM model correctly identified 73 of 77 positive cases, yielding 94.81% sensitivity (recall) and minimizing missed colon cancer diagnoses. These findings demonstrate that tailored, efficient machine learning models can strengthen diagnostic capacity where expert resources are scarce. Future work includes collecting 200 balanced KNH images (100 benign, 100 malignant) for proper validation, implementing Bayesian optimization with an expected improvement acquisition function, and training on combined histopathology and clinical data.

Residual Soil-Transmitted Helminth Infection Among School-Aged Children in an Urban Informal Settlement of Nairobi, Kenya

2026-08-03T20:39:45+00:00

Soil-transmitted helminths (STH) remain an important public health challenge across sub-Saharan Africa, particularly for school-aged children, and transmission may continue in crowded urban informal settlements despite Kenya's school-based deworming programme. This study set out to establish the current prevalence and species composition of STH infection and to examine the sociodemographic and water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) factors associated with infection among school-aged children in Pumwani, Nairobi. A descriptive cross-sectional survey enrolled 372 children aged 5–11 years, selected through two-stage cluster sampling from three public primary schools. A single Kato-Katz thick smear was used to examine each stool specimen, and structured questionnaires captured sociodemographic details, household WASH conditions, and deworming history. Associations were tested using Pearson's chi-square and Fisher's exact tests. The overall prevalence of STH infection was 19.4%, with Ascaris lumbricoides most common (15.6%), followed by Trichuris trichiura (4.3%); no hookworm was detected. Younger age (p = 0.0014) and lower grade level (p = 0.0024) were significantly associated with infection, whereas sex, parental education, WASH indicators, and deworming history were not. STH infection, therefore, persists in this informal settlement despite reported deworming coverage, with the heaviest burden among the youngest children. Sustained control is likely to require an integrated approach combining preventive chemotherapy with WASH improvements and school health education, and further work using multivariable analysis and more sensitive parasitological methods is recommended.

Health-System Predictors of Maternal and Perinatal Health Outcomes among Perinatal Women in Public Health Facilities in Mombasa County, Kenya

2026-05-05T12:11:26+00:00

Maternal and perinatal outcomes in low- and middle-income countries remain poor despite increased service coverage, reflecting health system constraints in service delivery. This study examined health system-related predictors of reported outcomes in public health facilities in Mombasa County, emphasizing responsiveness, access, clinical practices, and resources. A cross-sectional mixed-methods study was conducted across three public facilities (tertiary, secondary, and primary levels). Responses were obtained from 157 perinatal women, 23 healthcare providers, and 12 key informants out of 208 targeted (92.3% response rate). Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Mann–Whitney U tests, chi-square tests, and multivariable logistic regression. Qualitative data were analyzed thematically. Adjusted odds ratios (AORs) indicated the likelihood of favorable outcomes. Perinatal complications were common (69% of women), and over half reported recent facility-based maternal deaths. In adjusted analyses, favorable perinatal outcomes were significantly associated with culturally responsive care (AOR = 2.60; p = 0.040), timely access (AOR = 3.91; p = 0.012), geographical accessibility (AOR = 3.92; p = 0.011), adequate clinical care/decision-making (AOR = 4.50; p = 0.013), and availability of medical supplies and equipment (AOR = 3.23; p = 0.006). Supply and equipment availability was also associated with reduced likelihood of reported maternal deaths (AOR = 3.15; p = 0.003). Qualitative findings corroborated these results, highlighting emergency care delays, essential supply shortages, and inconsistent respectful care as key health system barriers. Maternal and perinatal outcomes in public facilities are strongly associated with health system performance, particularly timeliness, clinical competence, and resource availability. Strengthening these domains alongside culturally responsive delivery may substantially improve outcomes in similar urban settings.

Records Management and Open Governance in Kenya

2026-08-03T20:39:28+00:00

Open governance has emerged as a fundamental principle for promoting transparency, accountability, citizen participation, and evidence-based public administration. Its effectiveness depends largely on the availability of authentic, reliable, and accessible public records. In Kenya, devolved governance, expanding digital government initiatives, and progressive access-to-information legislation have heightened the need for effective records management systems to support institutional accountability and public trust. Despite these developments, persistent weaknesses in records management continue to impede the realization of open governance objectives. This paper examines the role of records management in advancing open governance in Kenya using a qualitative document analysis design. Data were drawn from legislation, policy documents, government reports, and peer-reviewed literature published between 2010 and 2025 and analyzed using thematic content analysis. The analysis revealed existing records management practices that support open governance, four interrelated challenges that constrain their effectiveness, and emerging opportunities for strengthening records governance through legal reforms, digital transformation, professional capacity development, and multi-stakeholder collaboration. The four challenges identified include: institutional and regulatory implementation gaps; inadequate digital infrastructure, interoperability, and information security; limited professional capacity and organizational support; and inadequate financial investment for sustainable records governance. By synthesizing evidence across legal, policy, and scholarly sources, the paper positions records management as a strategic enabler of open governance rather than merely an administrative function. The findings demonstrate that strengthening records management systems is essential for enhancing transparency, accountability, citizen participation, and evidence-based decision-making in Kenya. The paper contributes to the growing body of knowledge on records management and governance by providing an integrated conceptual framework and practical policy recommendations for strengthening legal implementation, institutional coordination, digital records governance, and professional capacity to support sustainable open governance reforms.