The Maasai girl child is vulnerable to poor menstrual hygiene, teen pregnancies, early marriages, domestic violence and female genital mutilation (FGM). Schools had temporarily offered the girls a shelter towards these challenges. However, covid-19 pandemic led to indefinite closure of schools forcing the girls back home to the full glare of these predicaments. Additionally, there was fear of the health pandemic which had also affected the economy. This study aimed at examining how covid-19 pandemic had affected the welfare of the Maasai girl child in Narok county, Kenya. A cross-sectional design of study was used. Data was collected using questionnaires and by observations. Descriptive analysis was used to analyze the data. The findings indicate that frustrations over lack of basic needs coupled with numerous domestic violence incidences caused the girls to engage in ‘sex for sanitary towels’. 83.1% of the girls did not use any sex protection means while majority of the rest used ineffective methods. FGM was at its peak as there was abundant time to practice it and less government interference. In conclusion, the Maasai girls’ welfare was in dire need for external assistance. Government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) should urgently intervene to rescue the Maasai girl child.
The plant extracts of T. brownii and Acanthaceae spp. have been used as biocatalysts by several communities in Kenya to hasten anaerobic digestion. This study aimed at assessing the viability of these two extracts in hastening the availability of plant nutrients from bioslurry at ambient conditions. A controlled research design was followed using uncooked kitchen waste as the substrate for 28 retention days. Changes in bioslurry physicochemical properties and available plant nutrients were monitored every 7 days using wet chemistry and spectroscopic methods. The findings indicated that the two extracts significantly impacted the levels of available plant nutrients in the bioslurry compared to the control samples. T. brownii additives significantly increased the levels of lime content, total Kjeldahl nitrogen, total phosphorus, phosphoric acid, sulfur, and soluble silicic acid. On the contrary, Acanthaceae spp. additives significantly increased the levels of calcium, potassium, nitrates, total ammoniacal nitrogen, sulfates, and phosphates in the bioslurry samples. The use of these plant extracts thus reduces the time taken while increasing the concentration of available plant nutrients from bioslurry.
The COVID-19 pandemic caught many Small and Middle-Income Enterprises (SMEs) unaware and unplanned. The pandemic led to restriction of several economic activities in Kenya; key amongst them transportation, tourism and education. The ripple effect of these restrictions caught up with SMEs, taunted to be a growing economic pillar in Kenya. This study purposed to analyze the exact effect of the pandemic on SMEs in Narok region, Kenya using various economic metrics. The findings were geared to furnish policy makers with the exact economic situation resulting from COVID-19. A case study research design was used with the help of questionnaires, interviews and observations. The researchers found out that most of the entrepreneurs were actually youthful. Commencement of SMEs was largely dependent on the political environment. Most of the SMEs in the region had begun between 2016 to 2018. The number of employees per SME had been effectively reduced to an average of 2 with their daily wages reduced from Ksh. 800 to 200. The pandemic reduced the supply of SMEs stock from other regions into Narok. 82.86% of the SMEs were forced to obtain stock within the county itself. Both the supply of stock to SMEs and their corresponding demand by buyers were drastically reduced by 77.14% and 91.43% respectively. There was however no significant increment in the pricing of the products (P < 0.05). The net profit margins of the SMEs reduced from in excess of Ksh. 20,000 to about Ksh. 5,000 per month. Other auxiliary services such as finance lenders, insurance and marketers were equally affected. About 54.45% of the SMEs were facing dissolution by their owners should the situation persist. In conclusion, the researchers found out that COVID-19 was more of an economic pandemic rather than a health pandemic in the study region. The authors recommend the national and county government to cushion the premises by waiving off some of their taxes.
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