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This study sought to establish the influence of fraud risk management practices in regard to preventive, detective and corrective controls on the level of fraud occurrence on listed firms in Kenya. This is because limited research had been conducted in the context of listed firms in Kenya and limited attention paid on how corrective controls influences fraud occurrence. A causal research design was applied. Data was obtained from a sample of 275 senior managers by using structured questionnaires. The findings revealed that only preventive and corrective controls had a profound negative effect on the degree of fraud occurrence on listed companies in Kenya. Conversely, detective controls did not considerably reduce fraud occurrence on listed companies in Kenya. The key implication of the findings noted by this study is that the proper implication of the most effectual anti-fraud measures can only be realized when the management are committed to do so. Additionally, corrective controls must be seriously looked into as an effective strategy of curbing fraud since they indeed are instrumental in curbing fraud. Future studies should be extended to the public sector in regard to the government ministries and the distinctive partitions of the private sector such as the insurance, real estate, manufacturing, automobile sectors among others respectively. Moreover, future studies can explore how firm size in terms of asset size or employee size moderates the relationship between fraud risk management practices and the level of fraud occurrence.

Short-term debt is regarded as an important source of financing for Small and Medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). This is because it can be easily accessed and useful during times of emergent working capital shortage. However, short-term debt is the least researched among the components of capital structure, which explains why its contribution to the financial performance of small and medium-sized businesses still lacks empirical validation especially in the Ugandan context. This paper sought to determine the effect of short-term debt on financial performance of Small and Medium Enterprises in Uganda. The study adopted a descriptive cross-sectional research design to collect and analyse the data. Stratified random sampling technique was used to select SMEs while purposive sampling technique was used to select one key respondent from each of the sampled 453 SMEs in Uganda. Primary data was collected using survey questionnaire. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics and simple linear regression analysis. The findings indicted that short-term debt had a negative and significant effect on financial performance of SMEs as measured by return on assets. The study provides empirical evidence to support the propositions in the extant literature that short-term debt significantly hampers financial performance of SMEs. The study recommends that SMEs should adopt low cost operation procedures to improve profitability. This would lead to accumulated profits that can be used for investment purposes as a means of driving growth among the SMEs without resorting to borrowing. This paper suggests that further research should be conducted to establish the justification for the negative and significant effect of short-term debt on financial performance using qualitative approaches.

Employees are the backbone of the hospitality industry, and the people in service are inseparable from the service they provide. This research investigated the influence of employer-employee relationships on service quality in the hospitality industry in Nakuru County, Kenya. Descriptive design was used to gather both quantitative and qualitative data through the use of questionnaires and interview guide as the key informants. The target population was 73 respondents comprising of 55 employees’ operational employees and 18 supervisors at Nuru Palace and the Legacy Hotel in Nakuru County. The findings also reveal that coaching and mentorship as well as mutual trust between employees and their superiors affect service quality positively.  The study recommends that hospitality establishments should facilitate more on job training and provide technical support to their employees. They should also work on establishing trust between the management and the workforce.

In spite of the rise in the global adoption of public private partnerships, developing countries have failed to attract private investments in equally measure as their developed partners. This has impacted on infrastructural financing in developing countries. The current study sought to establish how market risks influence the performance of public private partnership renewable energy projects. The study adopted a pragmatic paradigm and employed a mixed methods approach, correlational and descriptive survey design. Quantitative data was collected by use of a self-administered questionnaire and while an interview guide was used to collect qualitative data after piloting and reliability established. A sample size of 263 respondents was drawn from a target population of 769 using the Yamane formula. For descriptive statistics the study used the mean and standard deviation. For inferential statistics the study used Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation (r) and Multiple Regression while the F-tests were used in hypothesis testing. The study established a significant influence of market risks on the performance of public private partnerships renewable energy projects F (1,204) =104.689, P=0.000? 0.05.  H0 was consequently rejected. Based on this finding the study recommends hedging measures to promote public private partnerships

In order to push development to the grassroots and ensure citizens contribute meaningfully to development, many African countries have adopted the devolved governance system.  However, it has been observed that the devolution of political powers has not translated equally to envisioned overall development. In Kenya County governments have achieved various milestones towards development demonstrated through the infrastructure, social amenities, and standards of living. However, corruption has been increasing mainly due to a lack of transparency. This paper sought to examine the contribution of transparency levels in County government service delivery.  The study adopted mixed method approach using survey and in-depth interviews concurrently.  Stratified multi stage cluster sampling was deployed. Quantitative data was collected using questionnaires and qualitative data using interview schedules. Data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics and a typological theory developed to explain the study results. The study findings showed that the level of transparency in the counties was low which affected service delivery.  The study concluded that county governments should ensure that public participation and sharing of information is bidirectional to involve both users and management so as to improve service delivery.

This study sought to establish the influence of fraud risk management practices in regard to preventive, detective and corrective controls on the level of fraud occurrence on listed firms in Kenya. This is because limited research had been conducted in the context of listed firms in Kenya and limited attention paid on how corrective controls influences fraud occurrence. A causal research design was applied. Data was obtained from a sample of 275 senior managers by using structured questionnaires. The findings revealed that only preventive and corrective controls had a profound negative effect on the degree of fraud occurrence on listed companies in Kenya. Conversely, detective controls did not considerably reduce fraud occurrence on listed companies in Kenya. The key implication of the findings noted by this study is that the proper implication of the most effectual anti-fraud measures can only be realized when the management are committed to do so. Additionally, corrective controls must be seriously looked into as an effective strategy of curbing fraud since they indeed are instrumental in curbing fraud. Future studies should be extended to the public sector in regard to the government ministries and the distinctive partitions of the private sector such as the insurance, real estate, manufacturing, automobile sectors among others respectively. Moreover, future studies can explore how firm size in terms of asset size or employee size moderates the relationship between fraud risk management practices and the level of fraud occurrence.

The importance of Savings and Credit Cooperatives (SACCOs) cannot be underestimated. Despite their importance, they are faced with numerous challenges among them financial distress which threatens their very existence. The current research sought to establish the role of board characteristics in the financial distress suffered by Deposit Taking SACCOs in Nairobi County. The study is anchored inter alia on Agency Theory. Descriptive research design was adopted while Nairobi County was purposively chosen and a census was carried out on deposit taking SACCOs in the county. Secondary data was collected from SASRA using a data collection sheet and a panel data analysis performed using STATA software. The findings were presented using tables. The study concluded that there was a relationship between board characteristics and financial distress of Deposit Taking SACCOs where board composition, board education and board tenure have statistically significant and negative influence on financial distress. In conclusion SACCOs need to have lean boards, Board composition should also be improved by including more women on boards, there should be more inclusion of members with high and relevant education credentials, and SACCOs should have term limits for their members while an analysis too based on the Altman’s Z score models should be adopted for SACCOs. Another research may be carried out to establish other factors causing financial distress and how to turn around the SACCOs already in distress.

Proper management of finances in private primary schools is very imperative to their operations. There are, however, serious financial challenges in these private schools in Kenya as characterized by unprecedented high fees charged on students. The objective of this study was to assess the role of financial control in the growth of private primary schools in Kenya. The study was guided by the Cash Management Theory that gives emphasis to reasonable ways to deal with organizational finance management and efficient utilization as well as the Endogenous Growth Theory which stipulates that, in the long-run growth rate depends on a stable business environment. The study employed both quantitative and qualitative study design, which targeted 7,418 private primary schools in Kenya. Accessible population constituted of 3,431 heads of schools in four regions of Kenya namely: Nairobi, Central Kenya, Northeastern, and the Coastal regions. A random sampling method was used to draw a sample of 320 respondents who were either the principals’/Head teachers or deputy principal of the schools. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data. Structural Equation modeling using Analysis of Moment Structures was used to analyze the data. The fitness of the hypothesized structural and measurement models was tested using the Normed Fit Index and the Root Mean Squared Error. The overall path coefficients obtained were positive and significant at a 0.05 level of significance. The study established that financial control positively and significantly influenced the growth of private primary schools. The study recommended that private primary schools should have effective budget management mechanisms and strong financial controls.  

This research examines the effect of financial literacy training and micro insurance on the financial performance of Small and Medium Enterprises in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis of Ghana. This study aims (i)to determine the effect of financial literacy training on the financial performance of SMEs, (ii) to establish the effect of microinsurance on the financial performance of SMEs; (iii) and to determine the moderating effect of government regulations on the relationship between financial literacy training, micro-insurance and the financial performance of SMEs. The study was based on the financial intermediation theory and Schumpeter’s theory of innovation. The study adopted an explanatory research design, using a sample size of 260 SMEs in the Sekondi-Takoradi metropolis, Ghana. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data on financial literacy training, micro insurance, financial performance, and government regulations from SME owners and microfinance institutions. Analysis of the data collected revealed that both financial literacy training and micro-insurance had a positive and significant effect on the financial performance of SMEs. The study recommends that the management of microfinance institutions that provide financial literacy training and micro-insurance should undertake a survey on the needs of SMEs and the specific challenges they face in accessing microfinance services.

The use of technology as a tool for problem identification and solutions is on the rise in the world today. Many institutions have leveraged the power of technology to solve their existing problems. The young generation has also embraced technology and is applying it in varied ways ranging from entertainment to use for academic purposes. This research sought to find out the technology literacy among grade 1 and 2 pupils in public primary schools of Kisii County in Kenya. The population of the study constituted of 71,000 pupils in the two grades in the 710 schools in Kisii County. A sample size of 384 was determined using the Fisher formula and random sampling was used to collect data from 30% of the schools. Data were analyzed descriptively using the statistical package for social sciences. The findings indicated that 43.6% of the pupils had access to smartphones at their homes, 38.9% used them on a daily basis majorly to play games. The majority of the pupils were conversant with Facebook and WhatsApp. Among the recommendations is that academic institutions at the primary school level should start diverting the minds of the young towards tendencies to use more academic applications to enhance their learning skills.