Although studies have shown that involving students in decisions that impact their educational outcomes may improve their academic performance, little effort has been put in collating students' views on the appropriate extent of such involvement. Students are key stakeholders and beneficiaries of educational outcomes, as well as determinants of examination results. It is therefore important to study the impact of their inclusion into the school key decision systems. Using data from twelve public day secondary schools in Embu West Sub-County of Kenya, this study attempted to seek the views of students on the effect of their involvement in decision-making on two different fronts: choice of schools in which to enroll and formulation of school rules and disciplinary measures for school rule-violators. It was found that students' involvement in the key decisions of their educational process produces motivation, a sense of ownership and therefore a higher inclination to abide by the set rules, personal drive to meet the individual and collective goals, and an overall higher academic performance. It was recommended that students should be involved at all decision-making levels to the extent that is possible and plausible.

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The study examined influence of farmer capacity building in financial resource mobilization on performance of smallholder irrigation projects in Migori County, Kenya. The study adopted pragmatism as its philosophy, and used cross sectional and correlation research design. The target population was 2,815, and comprised farmers from fifteen smallholder irrigation projects that receive water from River Kuja through Lower Kuja Project. The sample size was 341 farmers. The study used systematic random sampling to draw the sample, used questionnaire to collect data, and analyzed data using descriptive and inferential statistics. The results showed that farmer capacity building in financial resource mobilization has a significant influence on performance of smallholder irrigation projects (r = 801, R2 = 0.641, F (5, 331) = 118.405, 0.000 < p < 0.05). Therefore, the study concluded that financial resource mobilization is a critical factor in performance of smallholder irrigation projects in Migori County. Consequently, the study recommends that Migori County Government educate farmers in smallholder irrigation projects on loan facilities by financial institutions. Further, the study recommends that Migori County develop a framework to assist farmers in smallholder irrigation projects to qualify for loans facilities operated by financial institutions.

The sustainability of a project is indicated by continuous benefits to the targeted beneficiaries. However, the concept of project sustainability has erroneously been generalized without consideration of the context in which it is built. In addition, projects operate in dynamically unique environments which persuade sustainability decisions and outcomes. The present study sought to achieve two objectives, namely: To determine the influence of stakeholders' management practices on the sustainability of Ugweri Dairy Project in Embu County, and To examine the moderating influence of institutional factors on the relationship between stakeholders' management practice and the sustainability of Ugweri Dairy Project in Embu County The study was anchored by sustainability, institutional, and stakeholders' theory. A descriptive survey research design with a cross-sectional approach was adopted. The targeted population was 152 personnel, including 7 managers and 145 registered dairy farmers. A sample size of 108 was determined using Krejcie and Morgan table for selecting sample sizes given the total population. The 108 respondents were picked through systematic random sampling (101 farmers) and census (7 managers). Narrative and numerical data were collected using interviews and structured questionnaires correspondingly. Statistical Packages for Social Sciences were used in the computation of numerical data. Descriptive statistics, such as percentage, mean, frequency, and standard deviation, were generated from the quantitative data. Also, parametric tests like Pearson correlational analysis and regression analysis were used in the data analysis. Narrative data were coded, and themes and summaries were generated. Hypotheses were tested at a 95% confidence interval using the F-test. Statistical data were summarized in tables. The relationship between stakeholders' management practice and the sustainability of Ugweri Dairy Project was found to be strong and positive (r = 0.77), and management practice predicted a 59% variation in the sustainability of Ugweri Dairy Project (R Square= 0.59). Thus, the null hypotheses were rejected, and it concluded that stakeholders' management practices have a significant relationship with the sustainability of Ugweri Dairy Project. The introduction of institutional factors to stakeholders' management practice caused a 19% variation in the sustainability of Ugweri Dairy Project. The 19% was statistically significant for p equals to 0.00, which is less than 0.05. This led to the rejection of the null hypothesis and concluded that institutional factors moderated the relationship between stakeholders' management practices and the sustainability of Ugweri Dairy Project. Project planners and designers should ensure that stakeholders are continuously engaged while prioritizing their needs and interest and resolving disputes to promote the delivery of sustainable impacts. The findings from the current study provide empirical evidence upon which the government can rely to develop operational guidelines with regard to stakeholder participation while aligning their needs with the development projects. Equally, the government can legislate on establishing a dispute-handling mechanism between stakeholders and project developers while strengthening and stabilizing the environments in which projects operate. Future methodologies should consider triangulation research like multiple data collection instruments for the greater conclusion and generalization of the findings. Potential areas for further study include: Interaction of stakeholders' management practice with organizational processes and performance and project success, and Mediation role of institutional factors on stakeholder management and project sustainability

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of team management practices (team formation, team motivation, team communication and team dispute resolution) on the performance of community-based projects in Embu, Kenya. Appropriate research hypothesis was derived from the substantive objective. Descriptive-correlational survey design was used to implement the research inquiry. The target population was 34 community-based projects in being implemented in Embu County. A sample of 32 projects was arrived at using Krejcie and Morgan table of sample determination. Proportionate stratified random sampling was used to select 32 project team leaders. Appropriate data was garnered using structured questionnaires. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The results suggest that at F (1,156) =4.934, P=0.000<0.05 implying that at 95% the relationship was statistically significant. The correlation coefficient (R=0.653) showed that there exists strong positive correlation between team management practices and performance community-based projects. The coefficient of determination (R 2 =0.426) implied that team management practices explained 42.6% of performance of community-based projects. The findings have immense contribution to both knowledge and practice in the areas of team management practices and performance of community-based projects. Follow up studies should focus on testing similar variables across different project set-ups while triangulating different methodologies in order to derive more generalizable results.