Faculty of Business Studies
http://repository.chuka.ac.ke/handle/chuka/238
2022-04-14T09:05:23ZPERFORMANCE OF STARTER BROILER CHICKENS FED ON A BLEND OF PHYTOBIOTICS AS IN-FEED ANTIBIOTIC REPLACERS
http://repository.chuka.ac.ke/handle/chuka/15577
PERFORMANCE OF STARTER BROILER CHICKENS FED ON A BLEND OF PHYTOBIOTICS AS IN-FEED ANTIBIOTIC REPLACERS
MAINA, JULIUS
The performance of starter Cobb 500 broiler chickens fed on stinging nettle leaf meal (NLM) or whole coriander seed meal (CSM) as feed additives singly and as a blend was investigated. The National Research Council (NRC) (1994) guidelines were followed in formulating the experimental diets. Each of the experiment lasted for 17 days. In experiment one, seven diets were prepared as follows: Control (0%), NLM at 1%, 1.5% and 2% and CSM at 0.5%, 1% and 1.5% dietary inclusion levels. A total of 84 unsexed chicks were weighed and randomly allocated the experimental diets with 4 replicates of 3 chicks each. The aim of the experiment was to get the level with highest Growth rate (GR) for each of the phytobiotic. For experiment two, three diets were utilised; basal diet supplemented with a blend of NLM at 1.5% and CSM at 0.5% inclusion levels (Blend), basal diet supplemented with oxytetracycline hydrochloride powder at the rate of 0.05g/kg of feed (Cox; the positive control) and the Control diet (negative control). A total of 36 unsexed chicks were weighed and randomly allocated to the experimental diets with 4 replicates of 3 chicks each. For both experiments, feed intake (FI) and body weight (BW) were weighed and recorded daily and weekly respectively. Feed conversion efficiency (FCE) and GR were also calculated. For experiment two, ileal nutrient digestibility (IND) and the populations of dominant ileal bacteria (DIB) were determined. Both experiments were laid out in a completely randomized design (CRD) with data being analysed using statistical analysis system (SAS version 9.4) software. Tukey pairwise comparisons were conducted to compare variations among diets where analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed differences at probability values (α = 0.05). Results from experiment one showed that the birds supplemented with NLM at 1% and CSM at 0.5% showed significant mean FI of 162.03g and 193g respectively. Significantly higher GR was recorded for all the dietary treatments; both for NLM and CSM supplemented groups (p<0.05) with the highest GR being 113.56g for NLM at 1.5% and 119.31g for CSM at 0.5%. Birds supplemented with NLM at 2% showed the highest FCE of 7.98 amongst the NLM group and CSM at 1.5% (8.35) for the CSM supplemented group. From the study, supplementing the diets of starter broiler chickens with NLM at 1.5% and CSM at 0.5% resulted to the highest GR. Results from experiment two showed that FI, GR and FCE were significantly (p<0.05) affected by the dietary treatments. The group of birds supplemented with Blend showed higher FI (133.08g), GR (117.10g) and FCE (5.35) as compared to the other dietary treatments. The IND of dry matter (DM) (85.21%), crude protein (CP) (89.86%) and crude fibre (CF) (67.65%) was significantly higher in the groups of birds fed on Blend. For the birds fed on Cox and control diets, the IND of DM and CF was numerically different but non-significant at p<0.05. The CP digestibility was significant for all the diets offered to the experimental animals at p<0.05. Additionally, all diets had a significant effect on the proliferation of ileal bacteria studied at p<0.05. The growth of Escherichia coli (E. coli) was significantly increased by the Control diet (4.56 cfu/ml), with Cox showing the least effect (3.13 cfu/ml). The populations of Clostridium perfringens (C. perfringens) were significantly increased with feeding Control diet (4.69 cfu/ml) but were decreased by Cox diet (2.09 cfu/ml). The Blend had the most significant effect on the growth of Lactobacillus species (spp.) (7.82 cfu/ml), with the Cox diet having the least effect (2.67 cfu/ml). From the study, dietary inclusion of a blend of NLM at 1.5% and CSM at 0.5% can be used as alterative to infeed oxytetracycline in growing of starter broiler chickens in Kenya.
A Research Thesis Submitted to the Graduate School in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirement for the Award of a Degree of Master of Science in Animal Nutrition of Chuka University
2022-09-01T00:00:00ZAPPLICATION OF ASYMMETRIC-GARCH TYPE MODELS TO THE KENYAN EXCHANGE RATE AND BALANCE OF PAYMENTS OF TIME SERIES DATA
http://repository.chuka.ac.ke/handle/chuka/15576
APPLICATION OF ASYMMETRIC-GARCH TYPE MODELS TO THE KENYAN EXCHANGE RATE AND BALANCE OF PAYMENTS OF TIME SERIES DATA
NDEGE, ERIC
The critical concern of financial market investors is uncertainty of the returns. The symmetric-GARCH type models can capture volatility and leptokurtosis. However, they do not capture leverage effects, volatility clustering, and the thick tail nature of financial time series. The primary objective of this study was to apply the asymmetric-GARCH type models to Kenyan exchange and balance of payments of time series data to overcome the shortcomings of symmetric-GARCH type models. Secondary objectives included fitting asymmetric-GARCH type models to the Kenyan exchange rate and Balance of payments data, identifying the best asymmetric-GARCH type model(s) that best fit(s) the Kenyan exchange rate and Balance of payments data and forecasting the Kenyan exchange rate and Balance of payments data trends using the best asymmetric-GARCH type model. The study compared five asymmetric Conditional Heteroskedasticity class of models: IGARCH, TGARCH, APARCH, GJR-GARCH, and EGARCH. Monthly secondary data on the exchange rate from January 1993 to June 2021 and Balance of payments from August 1998 to June 2021 were obtained from the Central Bank of Kenya website. Asymmetric GARCH models were fitted to the stationary log-differenced data based on the functions in the RUGARCH package in R. The best fit model is determined based on minimum value of Akaike Information Criterion (AIC), Bayesian Information Criterion (BIC). The optimal variance equation for the exchange rates data was APARCH (1,1) - ARMA (3,0) model with a skewed normal distribution (AIC = -4.6871, BIC = -4.5860) since it accounts for leverage and the Taylor effect. The optimal variance equation for the Balance of payment data was ARMA (1,1) - IGARCH (1,1) model with a skewed normal distribution (AIC = -0.14475, BIC = -0.07882) due to absence of (persistent) volatility clustering in the series. Volatility clustering was present in exchange rate data. Both series did not show evidence of leverage effect. Estimated Kenya’s exchange rate volatility narrows over time, indicating sustained exchange rate stability. While the balance of payment volatility has narrowed over time, the balance of payment deficit keeps widening. Thus, the government should take measures to ensure that it maintains it competitiveness in the global market to attract foreign direct investment and promote exports of goods and services.
A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate School in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Award of the Degree of Master in Applied Statistics of Chuka University
2022-09-01T00:00:00ZEFFECTS OF SELECTED MACROECONOMIC VARIABLES ON FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT IN KENYA
http://repository.chuka.ac.ke/handle/chuka/15568
EFFECTS OF SELECTED MACROECONOMIC VARIABLES ON FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT IN KENYA
LEBOO, VIBIAN
Foreign direct investment is fundamental to the economic development of all nations. Countries strive to ensure that a conducive environment for foreign investors is created. The foreign direct inflows in Kenya have been fluctuating owing to the macroeconomic variables which have been posing challenges to its growth. The Government of Kenya has worked to improve the country's ease of business and hence encourage FDI flows by introducing reforms such as attractive tax systems for corporations and a welcoming regulatory environment. The main objective of this study was to investigate how macro-economic variables affect foreign direct investment (FDI) in Kenya .The specific objectives of this study were to establish the effect of real interest rates on foreign direct investment (FDI) in Kenya, to determine the effect of inflation rates on FDI in Kenya, to assess the effect of economic growth on FDI in Kenya to determine the effect of exchange rate on foreign direct investment in Kenya and to examine the moderating effect of trade openness on the relationship between economic growth and FDI in Kenya. Both a causal and time series research design were used in the study. A checklist was used to gather time series data from the KNBS data base from 1966 to 2019. The researcher used the Vector Error Correlation Model (VECM) in the study. The Eclectic Paradigm theory, Neoclassical Trade theory, Internalization theory, Interest Rate Parity theory, and International Fishers theory served as the foundation for this thesis. Model 1 was statistically significant with a p-value of 0.0000<0.05 and an F-statistic of 21.4318. When all other variables are held constant, R2=0.8374 showed that the chosen macroeconomic variables produced a statistically significant positive forecast of 83.74 percent of foreign direct investment. Based on Model 2's findings, trade openness influences FDI and economic growth in a moderating manner as indicated by the coefficient estimate of the interaction term between trade openness and economic growth on FDI, which was 0.0427 with a p-value of 0.00000<0.05. The data demonstrated the statistical significance of the model used with an F-statistic of 20.3464; p-value = 0.00005<0.05. Selected macroeconomic variables contributed to 75.59 percent of all investment which is shown by R2 = 0.7559. The inference made was that the examined macroeconomic factors influence net FDI inflows to Kenya. The study suggests that the government launch initiatives that can encourage long-term economic growth, guarantee that inflation rates are stable, and concentrate on export promotion incentives that will aid in fostering greater trade openness with other nations in order to raise FDI levels.
A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate School in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Award of the Degree of Master of Science in Economics of Chuka University
2022-09-01T00:00:00ZPROCUREMENT PLANNING AND PROCUREMENT PERFORMANCE OF SELECTED PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES IN KENYA
http://repository.chuka.ac.ke/handle/chuka/15565
PROCUREMENT PLANNING AND PROCUREMENT PERFORMANCE OF SELECTED PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES IN KENYA
ANNROSE, NKIROTE
There has been an effort by the public institutions in Kenya to improve the performance of the procurement function. However, poor performance is still a challenge. These institutions are burdened with delays and occasional inability to deliver goods to the designated organizations within the required time. The goods are of poor quality that does not meet the user's requirements. This problem has led to a decline in the performance of enormous public organizations. The procurement department in universities is one of the fastest growing departments. They are headed by Procurement managers whose primary responsibility is coordinating procurement and disposal activities and offering professional advice to the University. The department faces several challenges in implementing the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal act (2015), which requires strict adherence to lengthy bureaucratic procedures. The study's general objective was to investigate the influence of procurement planning on procurement performance in public universities. The specific objectives were to determine the influence of Need assessment, cost estimation, quality specifications and risk management on procurement performance in selected public universities in Kenya. The study was grounded on systems, stakeholder, and resource-based theories. The study adopted a descriptive research design. The target population of the study was 324 participants, the sample size was 102, and stratified sampling was adopted. The study used primary data, which was collected through questionnaires. Multiple linear regression models aided in the analysis to determine the influence of independent variables on the dependent variable with the help of Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS Version 28.0). The significance of each independent variable was tested using a t-test, while the overall significance of the model was tested using F-test at a 5% significance level. The results implied a significant relationship between procurement planning and procurement performance. The t statistics and significance level established a statistically significant positive effect on needs assessment, cost estimation, quality specification, risk management, and procurement performance of public universities in the Eastern region at a 5% significance level with coefficients of 0.059, 0.100, 0.105 and 0.376 and p-values 0.405, 0.012, 0.040 and 0.000 respectively. Further, the study found that compliance with government procurement regulations moderated the relationship between procurement planning and procurement performance. The study concluded that public universities should encourage effective use of need assessments, cost estimations, quality specification, and risk management; they positively impacted public universities' procurement process in the Eastern region. The findings of this study are expected to be helpful; for public universities, as they would provide valuable complementary knowledge in formulating policy and a regulatory framework on procurement planning in Public Universities. Academicians are expected to use this information to add to their understanding of procurement planning and performance. It is expected to further lead to new knowledge generation and bridge existing gaps. It will be necessary for policymakers and stakeholders in Kenya's public procurement supply chain. The study will be a crucial ingredient in; planning, designing, and implementing a sound public procurement planning that will align itself to the overall economic strategy. It would also introduce new comparative knowledge for procurement departments to deal with challenges in implementing procurement planning.
A Research Project Submitted to the Graduate School in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Award of the Degree of Master of Science in Procurement and Logistics Management of Chuka University
2022-09-01T00:00:00Z