UoN@50
ACHIEVEMENTS
Seminars on Development Debates
As part of the UoN@50, the Institute for Development Studies (IDS), hosted a series of seminars throughout October 2020 starting from Thursday, October 8, 2020, to commemorate the Institute’s founding day. Since its inception on October 8, 1965, IDS has carried out research on issues of development concern and has been collaborating with partners locally and globally to influence development policy and practice. The seminars comprised presentations by renowned scholars and researchers. The discussions paid particular attention to the state of development in Africa from the 60s to the present. The seminars also devoted attention to the Kenya debate of the 70s and 80s with a focus on ‘what went right’ and ‘what has gone wrong’.
The first virtual event took place from 2:00 PM to 5.00 PM on Thursday, October 8, 2020, EAT. Prof. Anyang’ Nyong’o, Prof. Issa Shivji, and Prof. Ibbo Mandaza discussed ‘Development Policy Debate 50 Years On’.
The second virtual event took place from 2:00 PM to 5.00 PM on Friday, October 9, 2020, EAT. Prof. Sharon Fonn and Prof. Fumni Olonisakin discussed 'The Role of the Academy in the Development Processes: Dimensions and Perspectives at a critical juncture for Development.
The third virtual event took place from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM on October 29, 200 EAT. This seminar was titled “History of Development Research with Professor Bethwell Ogot", During this seminar, Prof. Bethwell Ogot and Prof. Anyang Nyong reflected on the history of developmental research.
The fourth and final event in this series was a valedictory ceremony of Prof. Njuguna Ng’ethe on October 30, 2020, starting from 3:00 PM to 6 PM. IDS took this day to honour Prof. Ng’ethe who had recently retired from the Institute.
IDS HELD A VIRTUAL FORUM HONORING EMERITUS PROF. AMB. JUDITH MBULA BAHEMUKA ON THURSDAY, 29th APRIL, 2021
The UNESCO/UNITWIN Chair in collaboration with the Institute for Development Studies (IDS) at the University of Nairobi (UoN) hosted an online forum to honour Prof. Judith Mbula Bahemuka. Apart from the UoN community, the forum will bring together people that Prof. Bahemuka has worked with including those in academia, public officials, diplomats, eminent persons and representatives of communities. The forum started at 3:00 PM (EAT) and end at 6.30 PM (EAT).
The forum was moderated by Prof. Winnie Mitullah (the incoming UNESCO/UNITWIN Chairperson) and Prof. Karuti Kanyinga (the Director, IDS). During the event, the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Stephen Kiama read Emeritus Prof. Amb. Judith Mbula Bahemuka’s citation and thanked her for her exemplary work to the University of Nairobi and the larger Kenyan community. He then invited several guests to speak including Prof. Kivutha Kibwana (Governor Makueni County) and Hon. Charity Ngilu (Governor Kitui County). Please click on this link https://www.uonbi.ac.ke/news/honouring-prof-bahemuka to a full story of the event.
New Research Agenda Unveiled as IDS Celebrates the 54th Anniversary
The Institute for Development Studies, University of Nairobi, unveiled its research agenda for the future during a colourful ceremony to celebrate its 54 birthday.
In a keynote speech to mark IDS Founders Day on 8th October 2019, IDS Director Prof Karuti Kanyinga said the Institute is developing a strategy that will reflect the unique development challenges facing Kenya, Africa and the world in general. The strategy, which will identify important drivers of change, will be launched during the next anniversary on Thursday 8th October 2020.
“The graduates we train have a responsibility to move the country forward. But for them to effectively do so, we must reorient our ideological position. We must begin to rethink how we do what we do and raise important and challenging criticism of the environment in which we operate.
“We must strive for excellence and not allow ourselves to fall into easy contentment and the mediocrity that has become a characteristic feature of many public institutions,” Prof Kanyinga said during in his speech, ‘“Useable Past”. The IDS Today and Thoughts on Future Research Agenda.”
The director unveiled four tentative thematic areas, namely: Governance and Political Economy of Development; Inclusive Development: Economic and Social Dimensions; Climate Change, Natural Resources, Environment Management and Development; and Economy, International Processes, and Development.
“These research themes do not fall into neat categories. There is overlap between the themes and some will drop off as we discuss the strategy. Some new ones will be introduced as we finalise discussions in different spaces. Furthermore, cross-cutting themes of sustainable development and gender, women empowerment, and development run through all these four future areas of research,” said Prof Kanyinga.
The director, who took over the IDS mantle early this year, also identified several aspects that he hopes to revitalise during his tenure.
“In line with our Vision we will continue to engage development researchers, practitioners, and policymakers, among others, to maximise the policy impact of our research and also identify drivers of change. We shall emphasize collaboration at all levels and in what we do in order to enrich our work with ideas that relate to local realities,” he said
IDS will also maintain the public seminar series to debate topical issues. Practical solutions to some of the development challenges that face the country will be identified
The director welcomed multidisciplinary researchers from Kenya, the region and other parts of the world to submit their papers for peer review before presentation at the IDS seminars and final publication as Working Papers (WPs).
He said IDS hopes to maintain a culture of conducting regular national surveys on social-economic and political trends and collaborate with others who generate other forms of data to produce joint products.
“We host the Afrobarometer survey project that measures citizen attitudes on issues of governance and democracy in Africa. This is in addition to our surveys undertaken to inform the World Economic Forum, and County Capacity Assessment under the devolved system of government in Kenya,” he said.
IDS research, he observed, has also shaped many ideas on development in the region, citing Kenya Debate, the global debate on the role of the peasantry in Africa’s development, and the debate on Kenya’s land question and its implications for the rest of sub-Saharan Africa.
He however acknowledged that the visibility of IDS studies and contributions to the development space diminished in tandem with the rise of authoritarianism in the 1980s and reduced funding.
“As a result, the universities lacked the resources to attract the best scholars, and therefore rapidly declined in quality. A decline in standards, quality of publications and even ‘quality of knowledge’ began to show everywhere,” said Prof Kanyinga.
He noted that in line with his speech’s theme (‘“Useable Past”. The IDS Today and Thoughts on Future Research Agenda.”), he has been reviewing theoretical frameworks that would help explain how the past IDS successes and challenges can help to shape the future.
For the full speech of the IDS Director during the 54th Anniversary, click here
MILESTONES
IDS Elders and New Generation Grace 54th Birthday
Renowned researchers who are also former IDS directors, IDS research associates, IDS alumni, current students and the University of Nairobi community at large blended perfectly in a mixture of IDS nostalgic past and prosperous future as the institute marked 54 years.
The academic sages fondly referred to as elders during the celebrations, took to the podium and regaled the audience with tales of their early days at IDS while the vibrant new generation had its turn too, to pitch for a bright future.
The first elder to climb the podium was Prof Shem E. Migot-Adholla, a social and economic development specialist with long inter-disciplinary research and policy experience in many countries and former IDS Director. The scholar recalled his humble beginnings at IDS as a Research Assistant, at a time when universities in the region faced acute challenges of creating a pool of researchers.
While echoing the theme of the celebration, “Useable Past”. The IDS Today and Thoughts on Future Research Agenda”, the now Kenyatta University Council Chair observed that IDS could utilise some of its usable past to help solve challenges in climate change and agriculture.
Prof Migot-Adholla urged young researchers to be innovative. “We are not thinking out of the box. We have got good agricultural lands that we do not utilise well. The establishment of IDS was based on producing people who will replace expatriates. We did it during our time,” he said.
Prof Kabiru Kinyanjui, IDS Director (1983-1985), said his association with IDS spans 50 years back and that at one point the Institute was more famous than the University of Nairobi.
The researcher noted that IDS is known for its ability to articulate research agenda for the country, region and Africa from a multidisciplinary perspective. He urged the Institute to utilise this usable past.
He also said IDS is famous for institutional capacity building, the ability to innovate in research and research outputs, the ability to attract researchers from different universities and forging international connections.
He hailed the now-famous IDS bi-monthly seminars, noting that they have a long history. “Former President Mwai Kibaki and Barack Obama Senior would attend these seminars and then unwind at the nearby Norfolk Hotel,” he said amid laughter from the audience.
Prof Patrick Alila said the celebrations were a forum to bridge the generation gap. He urged IDS to maintain the spirit of teamwork within the institution and beyond. “This is something that should not die. If we learn from each other we save time for seeking training elsewhere,” said Prof Alila, who was IDS Director from 1990 to 2001.
He urged the Institute to focus on matters that affect the wellbeing of the majority of citizens, saying that issues such as unemployment, corruption, poverty and economic sustainability are still a challenge.
The IDS Associates were represented by Dr George Ruigu and Prof Mbula Bahemuka. Prof Bahemuka appreciated IDS in changing the mindset of people. “IDS has shown how one can make a change in a country where people don’t like the ivory tower,” she said. Dr Ruigu thanked the Institute for exposing him to various research experiences.
Dr Mary Kinyanjui, a Senior Research Fellow at IDS, made a presentation entitled: “Towards an African Economic Geography: Lessons Learned from a Career in Development Research. It was based on her experiences in two Kenyan universities in teaching and research. She highlighted challenges such as a collection of personal data and the use of research language that does not exist in local communities.
Speaking on behalf of the IDS alumni, Mr Samuel Kiiru urged the Institute to revitalise its publications, including the Journal of Development Studies, and adopt new technology in communicating research.
“The alumni can provide a community of scholars who can engage with IDS,” said Kiiru, who was a member of the pioneer IDS MA students.
The current students were represented by Mr Dansam Ouma, who observed that the Institute was celebrating useful years of existence. “Through the past, we learn our mistakes and build on successes,” he said.
The PhD, students were represented by Ms Rama Hassan, who paid glowing tribute to individuals who have played a significant role in the successes of IDS. The event was moderated by Prof Wambui Kiai.
STAFF CONVOCATION
Since the journey that began 50 years ago, IDS has been steered by directors who have contributed immensely to its growth as a premier research institution. The Directors who led the institute from 1965 to 1970 were: Prof. B. F. Massell, Prof. E. R. Rado, Prof. J. S. Coleman, and Prof. Dharam P. Ghai, in that order. However, during that time, only Prof Coleman, and Prof. Dharam P. Ghai served as substantive directors. The other two served on an acting capacity basis. In the 1960s, the IDS research, which was informed by the prevailing socio-economic forces of the time, mainly focused on issues surrounding agriculture and rural development, education, industry and urban development, population studies, as well as tourism.
This did not change very much in the 1970s. However, there were slight variations in emphasis, informed by the changes in development thinking that were taking place at the global level. This necessitated the changing of the research areas. For example, industrialization, employment, trade/commerce, health, nutrition, and population issues became research areas in themselves. At the same time, the Institute was very much involved in assisting the government with development planning and evaluation. The Directors that led the Institute from 1970 to 1980 are Prof. Dharam P. Ghai, Dr J. M. Gachuhi, Dr Peter Hopcraft, and Prof W. M. Senga in that order. During this time, Dr Gachuhi and Dr Hopcraft served on an acting capacity basis.
The 1970s are particularly fondly remembered at IDS because of the leading role the Institute played in producing the celebrated ILO publication on “Employment, Incomes, and Inequality” in 1972. The 1980s also witnessed a slight variation in the research themes at IDS in that, though rural and agricultural development remained a core research theme, new areas, like the management of natural resources and issues to do with the environment, human resource development, and housing were incorporated into the research priorities of the Institute. This is a clear indication that IDS kept pace with, and at times also set the pace for development thinking in the region.
The Directors that led the institute from 1980 to 1990 are Prof. Senga, Prof. C.O. Okidi, Prof. Shem. E. Migot-Adholla, Prof. Kabiru Kinyanjui, and Prof. Njuguna Ng’ethe in that order. During that time, both Prof. C.O. Okidi and Prof. Shem E. MigotAdholla served on an acting capacity basis. In the 1990s, the Institute’s research focus somewhat changed to reflect what was happening at the global level. Thus, areas such as commerce & industry, management of natural resources, and human resource development gained recognition as research areas within the Institute. Two directors steered the Institute in the 1990s. These were Prof. Njuguna Ng’ethe and Prof. Patrick O. Alila.
The year 1999 provides a major turning point in the history of the Institute. It is the year that the Institute’s curriculum for the Master of Arts in Development Studies degree programme was passed by the University of Nairobi’s Senate. Thus the Institute admitted its first group of postgraduate students in Development Studies in the 2000/2001 academic year. In the same token, the Institute registered its first PhD student in 2004. Three directors have led the Institute from the year 2000 to the present. These are Prof. Patrick O. Alila, Prof. Dorothy McCormick, Prof. Mohamud A. Jama and Prof Winnie Mitullah. Prof Karuti Kanyinga was appointed Associate Director in 2013. In 2019, Prof Karuti Kanyinga was appointed the Institute’s Director, deputised by Dr Paul Kamau.
LUMINARY ALUMNI
As IDS celebrates 50 years of existence, one of its milestones is the introduction of a PhD programme in 2003 to build human capacity in Development Studies. Dr Paul Kamau enrolled in the PhD programme in 2004 and completed it in a record time of three and half years; dispelling the myth that one cannot graduate in time at the University of Nairobi.
Dr Kamau, popularly known as PK, is a man of many firsts and an achiever who has travelled many academic ridges to reach his present standing. He is currently a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute and the only IDS (Nairobi) PhD alumni. He joined IDS in 2001 as a Research Fellow. He graduated with a first-class BA degree in Economics from the University of Nairobi in 1995, having been in the pioneer 8:4:4 group. Due to his sterling performance, he was awarded a prestigious scholarship by the African Economic Research Consortium (AERC) to study MSc. in Economics at the University of Zimbabwe between 1996 and 1997. Upon completion, he was employed at Moi University in the Department of Quantitative Skills, where he taught for four years (1998-2001).
Dr Kamau teaches Entrepreneurship, Trade, Industrial Development, Human Resource & Development, Development Management Theory and Research Methods. He has also been involved in teaching International Economics, Economic Statistics, Monetary Economics and Macroeconomics in the School of Economics. These courses are quite related to his PhD thesis entitled ‘Upgrading and Technical Efficiency in Kenyan Garment Firms: Does Insertion in Global Value Chains Matter?’ and supervised by two renowned Development Economists: Prof Dorothy McCormick and Prof Peter Kimuyu. Since graduating, Dr Kamau has supervised many MA project papers and currently has four PhD students at various levels of their studies.
In research, Dr Kamau has demonstrated exemplary performance. He has participated in many research projects within IDS and abroad, which have honed his research skills. “I have been involved in several studies on Clothing and Textiles in Africa; Value Chains, Ascendancy of China and other Asian Drivers, Youth Unemployment; Fish Trade in the Lake Victoria Value Chains; Micro and Small Enterprises and Informal Trade, Implications of HIV/AIDS on Women Land Rights, Child Labour, and Governance - all in relation to development,” PK told IDS @50 Newsletter. His most recent research projects are in Afrobarometer R6, where he is the East African Regional Deputy Director deputizing Prof Winnie Mitullah; and Successful African Firms and Intuitional Change (SAFIC) in Africa where he is the Deputy Country Coordinator. He is the team leader in the ICT Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Employment Creation in African project and a team member of the Political Settlement, inclusive growth and Employment Schemes in Agriculture and Agro-processing Sectors in Africa; Dutch Multinationals and employment in Kenya and Nigeria.
He has also been coordinating Kenya’s Executive Opinion Survey for the World Economic Forum (WEF) – Global Competitiveness Annual Report since 2004. Through research and consultancies, Dr Kamau has fundraised substantial resources for the University of Nairobi. Dr Kamau is widely published with three (3) books, eleven (11) book chapters and 15 refereed journal articles. He is the current Examination Coordinator in IDS and prior to this, he was the Seminar Coordinator for three years. “Working in IDS is very exciting and fulfilling; one is encouraged to intellectually explore broad and specific issues relating to development. Being a multidisciplinary institute, an issue is critically analysed from a wider perspective. Colleagues in IDS are very supportive, especially to upcoming scholars. It is just the right place to grow academically,” the scholar observes.
He, however, acknowledges that there are challenges that one faces while in IDS, one being the high expectations in research delivery from stakeholders due to the expectations that many hold for IDS and of course the many demands for research projects. “All in all, I am humbled and truly privileged to work among refined and well-articulated development thinkers and scholars in IDS, says PK. He confesses having gained immensely and feels empowered enough to go even to greater heights as a development scholar.
LUMINARY GUESTS
Luminary guest - Guest Lecture at IDS University of Nairobi-25 November 2020
The Institute for Development Studies and the African Union Development Agency (AUDA)-NEPAD organised a guest lecture on 25th November 2020 at 2-4 pm. The lecture was within the context of Human Development, with the theme "The Role of NEPAD on Industrialisation”. The title of the lecture was The Role of the African Union Development Agency-NEPAD in Industrialisation. The virtual lecture targeted the students taking the units Issues in Human Development, and Agriculture and Development in Africa handled by Prof. Rosemary Atieno at IDS. However, it was found relevant and beneficial to all students of development studies as well as faculty and the larger University community who joined in the session. It was delivered by Dr Bernice Mclean- Supervisor of Industrialisation, AUDA-NEPAD.
Luminary guest - Prof Gabrielle Lynch speaks on the failures of transitional justice mechanisms – 24th September 2020
The transitional justice mechanisms following the 2007/2008 post-election violence in Kenya did not live to their expectations. This was the gist of Prof Gabrielle Lynch’s seminar presentation hosted by IDS on 24th September 2020.
With a specific focus on Kenya’s Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC), Prof Lynch analysed how transitional justice efforts are incapable of dealing with how unjust and violent pasts actually persist.
The Seminar, 'Performances of Injustice: Kenya’s Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission, was based on her book, Performances of Injustice: The Politics of Truth, Justice and Reconciliation in Kenya.
The book reveals the story of an ongoing political struggle requiring substantive socio-economic and political change that transitional justice mechanisms can theoretically recommend, and which they can sometimes help to initiate and inform, but which they cannot implement or create, and can sometimes unintentionally help to reinforce.
The scholar says that although it has become almost expected that truth commissions will be introduced to try to consolidate a transition from authoritarianism and conflict to democracy and peace, many countries that have sought to adopt South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) have not been successful since specifics vary by country.
Prof Lynch observes that TRJC’s efficacy was highly compromised due to the credibility crisis regarding its chairperson, Ambassador Bethuel Kiplagat, who was linked to three injustices the commission was meant to investigate. This prompted claims that he had been purposefully appointed to undermine the commission’s work.
“Other lessons were largely ignored. This included the importance of popular reception and political buy-in, as well as the inherent limitations of such a temporary body,” says Prof Lynch.
The TJRC hearings received were not well covered by the media, unlike the TRC hearings. Prof Lynch observes that many of the issues heard at TJRC hearings had previously featured in other commissions hence they were ignored.
Other notable shortcomings were:
TJRC was upstaged by the International Criminal Court, which charged four prominent individuals with crimes against humanity.
TJRC relied on the TJRC Act’s stipulation that “recommendations shall be implemented” while authorities pushed the Commission to alter sections of the land chapter that adversely mentioned the first president, Jomo Kenyatta.
Gabrielle Lynch is a Professor of Comparative Politics at the University of Warwick. Her research interests include ethnic identities and politics, elections and democratisation, and transitional justice and local reconciliation efforts with a particular focus on Kenya.
Luminary guest - IDS co-hosted THE 6TH FSD KENYA ANNUAL LECTURE ON INCLUSIVE FINANCE on 19th NOV 2020
Researcher Julie Zollmann was the speaker at the 2020 FSD Public Annual lecture on inclusive finance, co-organised by FSD Kenya and the University of Nairobi, Institute for Development Studies (IDS) on Thursday, November 19th, 2020. Dr Radha Upadhyaya of IDS was one of the moderators at the lecture which was a webcast live on FSD Kenya’s YouTube channel.
The annual lecture is FSD Kenya’s flagship event. Held every year since 2015, the lecture highlights new thinking and raise cutting edge issues in the field of financial inclusion. Past speakers have included Dr Tavneet Suri, a development economist and associate professor of applied economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Sloan School of Management; Consumer protection expert Rafe Mazer; leading British Economist and author of Other People’s Money, John Kay; accomplished Entrepreneur Julian Kyula, founder of MODE Group, a fintech spanning over 26 countries in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East; as well as FSD Kenya’s former Director and long-time observer of Kenya’s financial sector, Dr David Ferrand.
The 2020 lecture’s speaker, Julie Zollmann, is a researcher who uses the tools of economics and anthropology to understand how ordinary people use technology and finance to navigate their economic lives. She has particular expertise in sub-Saharan Africa and in translating research into real-life solutions. In Kenya, Julie has had a long relationship with FSD Kenya, leading the Kenya Financial Diaries project and more recently the Kenya COVID-19 Diaries in partnership with BFA Global, tracking the economic impact of COVID-19 on low-income households and small enterprises in the country.
The 2020 annual lecture also included the official launch of Living on Little: Navigating Financial Scarcity in Modern Kenya, Julie’s new book based on FSD Kenya’s Financial Diaries project. The lecture, like the book, will demonstrate the many deep and overlooked ways that scarcity shapes the lives of ordinary Kenyans, drawing on four years of systematic research with nearly 300 low-income families. A close examination of ordinary Kenyans lives showcases their optimistic and ambitious pursuit of the maendeleo (development) mission, a mission often thwarted by structural barriers and inequalities. How might the financial sector finance—and private enterprise more broadly—reimagine their roles in building a truly inclusive economy for all?
Luminary guest - PROF CHEESEMAN SPEAKS ON AUTHORITARIANISM, DEMOCRACY AND DEVELOPMENT on Nov 14 2019
“If you had been given a choice of which kind of political system to be born into, would you choose authoritarianism or democracy?”
This is the question that Nic Cheeseman, Professor of Democracy at the University of Birmingham, posed during a packed seminar hosted by the Institute for Development Studies, University of Nairobi, on November 14, 2019.
Many hands were raised in favour of democracy but a few hands were raised too in favour of authoritarianism, including one famous hand in political studies. The question set the stage for Prof Cheeseman’s talk entitled: Is Authoritarianism or Democracy Better for Development?
The scholar noted that democratic frustrations in Kenya, Zambia, and Zimbabwe; effective authoritarian regimes in Ethiopia and Rwanda; and the rise of China as a successful developmental authoritarian state are some of the arguments made in favour of authoritarianism.
Prof Cheeseman pointed out that a small number of authoritarian states perform well but most perform extremely badly. He said Rwanda, with economic growth of around 8%, is one of the countries often cited as examples of nations thriving under authoritarianism but he argued that its successes cannot be replicated in other countries and may not be sustainable after President Paul Kagame’s exit.
In the Rwandan case, he said, extremely tight political control is translated into tight economic control, development-driven through Party-Owned-Enterprises, and centralization of rents, which are reinvested in the system.
“It is implausible that these conditions can be created and sustained in most African states,” said Prof Cheeseman.
The scholar noted that ultimately, all authoritarian regimes are founded upon violence – sometimes embedded within a militarized state and society itself, sometimes visited upon citizens only occasionally, and otherwise held back as a looming threat. Authoritarian regimes are responsible for the stagnation of development and deliver development to legitimize human rights abuses.
On the other hand, Prof Cheeseman observed that on average, democracies generate higher levels of economic growth and countries that have been democratic for longer tend to grow faster. In democratic nations, policies reflect the public need and are implemented in an accountable and transparent system.
Prof Cheeseman’s book, Authoritarian Africa: Repression, Resistance, and the Power of Ideas, was launched during the seminar presided over by IDS director Prof Karuti Kanyinga.
HISTORICAL PROJECTS
The IDS research programme is designed to mirror the high priority social and economic problems of development. The emphasis is on Kenya, but the broader problems of the African continent are also addressed. The research is concerned both with basic development problems and with more immediately pressing policy issues. This was the mandate given to IDS, a social science multidisciplinary institute, separated in 1965 from cultural division, headed by Prof. B.A. Ogot later was renamed Institute of African Studies.
The latter was to promote and conduct original research in the fields of African history and pre-history, ethnography and anthropology, religion, beliefs etc. The IDS mandate was broad and included the provision of research opportunities, facilities and professional guidance to facilitate accelerated Africanisation of university teaching materials based on analysis of Kenyan society and related to its development. The Institute was made an integral part of the University of Nairobi on par with the faculties. A board was instituted to ensure the IDS mandate is properly discharged.
The projects constituting the IDS Research programme were purposively and predominantly rural sector-focused, especially from the 1970s onwards. The majority have been rural-based, some addressing external factors, themes having a strong bearing on rural sector population and others taking up issues of national development. As years progressed there has been a constant refinement of the original research focus to address emerging current issues of development. This has been necessitated by the unfolding dynamics of the development process since the1960s modernization days that has resulted in drastic revision in the thinking and practice of development. In overall terms, the projects can be grouped into broad categories.
First is Rural Development and Agriculture category, which includes the landmark special rural development Programme, rural administration, district development planning, agricultural programme, rural administration, agricultural development administration, dairy industry, irrigation, maize and beans marketing.
Secondly, the Kenyan Society category including population and development issues, women in rural development, ethnicity and rural development, clientelism, peasantry, rural stratification, etc. Thirdly IDS has had projects on Environment and National Resources utilization, notable problems of Kenya’s arid and semi-arid areas, energy, tourism.
The fourth category is on Human Resource and Development, specifically projects on health, nutrition education and housing. The fifth category on Industry and Trade consists of projects such as Kenyanisation of industry, the export performance of the sector, dualism, informal sector, micro, small and medium enterprises.
Click here to see the various projects done by IDS since inception.