This thesis looks at the Akamba land tenure system and its impact on women’s ownership of land in masinga division. The research acknowledges the critical importance of land reform in Kenya as a country that inherited colonially structured and unequal land ownership patterns. However, there are limits to state-led, masculinised and politicized land reform when women , as gendered subjects in government policies and as a social category are not considered in theory and practice of land...
ABSTRACT This study seeks to investigate the history, practices and transformation of the Akurinu movement, a religious group that emerged in Kandara sub-County, Murang’a County in Central Kenya in the 1920s. Its emergence was as a response to the socio-economic, political, and religio-cultural conflict caused by British colonial administration and the teachings of western Christian Missionaries in Gikuyu land. In the colonial period the Akurinu movement became withdrawn from the society a...
ABSTRACT Traditional Bukusu music and dance have suffered an authenticity crisis since the 20th century. This, we found out, has been as a result of globalization that has seen the adaptation and appropriation of Bukusu folk melodies and dance styles. Of significant influence on Bukusu music and dance have been the activities of colonialists, acculturation and the post- colonial socio-economic, political and cultural dynamics. Innovation and advances in media technology have also greatly impa...
This study examined gender labour relations in some manufacturing industries in Thika, Kiambu County. It mainly focused on the formal industries, covering the period between 1945 and 2010. The study was guided by three objectives with first one examining the historical development of industries within Thika Town Constituency between 1945 and 1963. The second objective focused the effect of those industries on gender relations from 1963 to 1985 whereas the third objective examined the imp...
The coffee cooperative sector by tradition has been organized into cooperatives in order to enhance its effectiveness and facilitate regulation. Cooperatives account for an estimated 65 percent of the coffee sector in Kenya. However in the last two decades beginning 1990, in the era of liberalization the ability of the coffee cooperative societies to deliver economic value to its members has raised a lot of concerns and debate. This is mainly because, coffee production declined by 61% in...
This study focused on agricultural change among the Keiyo of Elgeyo-Marakwet County in the period between 1894- 1990. It examined the pre-colonial era in order to determine the Keiyo people’s knowledge about their agriculture and to help bring out the changes that came in with the advent of colonialism. The study examines how the capitalist economy established by British colonialism altered the pre-existing modes and relations of production in Keiyo. By analyzing the changes that trans...
ABSTRACT It is a historical fact that most Kenyan communities are hounded by actual or potential ethnic conflicts. Kenya comprises of many ethnic communities that are religiously shaped by their cherished cultures which influence their behavior and conduct. This study analyses the contribution or role of culture in the frequent cross-border conflicts between the Maasai and the Kuria communities from 1920 to 1963. The need to carry out this research arose due un-ending cross-border conflicts b...
ABSTRACT Various studies have captured different aspects of politics in colonial and post-independent Kenya. While these studies have contributed to our understanding of political processes and democratic transitions in Kenya, there are still some issues in Kenya’s politics that have not been given adequate scholarly attention and therefore require further investigation. In order to have a comprehensive analysis of Kenya’s political processes, there’s a need to investigate how ethnicity...
The study examined the evolution of co-operative societies in Nyandarua County between 1965 to 2000 with particular emphasis on Karagoini Marketing Co-operative Society in Ndaragwa Sub-county. The primary objective of this research was to study the nature and characteristics of the co-operative societies in Nyandarua County from the early independence period. A number of co-operative societies were formed in the Sub-county from 1965. The societies formed included Ndaragwa (1965), Kanyagi...
ABSTRACT This study set out to explore the changes in gender power relations among the people of Igembe Central, Meru County in Kenya. It focuses on the pre-colonial power relations between men and women, the transformation of gender power relations during the colonial and post-colonial eras among the Ameru. The study aimed to achieve the following objectives; to examine the concept of power relations between men and women before colonialism, investigate the transformation of gender power re...
ABSTRACT Since the pre-colonial period, women have been organising themselves in diverse ways. This study sought to examine the transformation of women self-help groups in Maragua, Murang‟a County from 1895 to 2013. The study examined women experiences in their self-help groups evaluating how they have evolved and remained resilient in the wake of changing times, adapting and adjusting accordingly. 1895 is a significant year because Kenya became a British protectorate and consequently there...
ABSTRACT The study focused on agricultural transformation in Nyamira County between 1945 and 2002.The study objectives included process of agricultural transformation and policies during the onset of the Second World War, drivers of agricultural transformation in the County since 1945.The study also examined the socialeconomic effects of agricultural transformation between 1979 and 2002.The year 1945 was important to the study because after the Second World War, for the first time in history...
ABSTRACT Masculinity denotes the attributes that a particular society judges to be ideally associated with men and boys. It is distinct from maleness, a biological and physiological classification concerned with male reproductive system. Masculinity entails socially constructed features, behaviour and secondary sex characteristics associated with men. Among the Chuka, the definition of manhood is not only complex but also embedded in the practice of circumcision.Thus circumcision is a proces...
ABSTRACT According to 1999 Population and Housing Census, an estimated 4.2 million adults in Kenya were illiterate, 60% being women. According to vision 2030, Kenya aims at achieving 80% adult literacy in order to transit the country to a middle level economy. This study investigates the determinants of access and effective participation of Adult Basic Education Programmes in Nakuru-North District, Nakuru County, from independence to 2014. This study area has been experiencing poor participa...
ABSTRACT The study examined socio-cultural changes in the farming and use of Miraa (Catha edulis) in Igembe District of Meru County in Kenya from 1940-2014. The Meru comprises of nine sub-ethnic groups namely Chuka, Muthambi, Mwimbi, Igoji, Miutine, Imenti, Tigania, Igembe and Tharaka. Miraa is grown intensively in Meru by the Igembe and Tigania sub-ethnic groups. It is of prime economic importance for the region as it feeds a growing national and international market. However, it is a ...