Drivers of Public Participation of Youths in Development of Water Projects: Evidence from Tiaty Sub-County, Kenya
Abstract
Public participation has remained a significant factor in Kenya's development since the new constitution was enacted in 2010. Still, many challenges are visible regarding the extent to which youths play a part in the creation and execution of water projects, among others. These observations invite development researchers to conduct more studies to understand the drivers of youth involvement in water projects. This study aimed to investigate the drivers of youth participation in the development of water projects in Tiaty Sub-County, Baringo County. This is so because, despite Kenya, and by extension Baringo County Government's well-recognized framework for public involvement, little is known about how it has affected or been applied in youth’s engagement in the water projects in the county. The study was anchored on three theories: Chambers’ Participatory Rural Appraisal; Arnstein’s Ladder of Citizen Participation; and Sen’s Capability Theory Approach. The study used the survey design used and targeted a population of 52,000 youth residents of Tiaty Sub- County, Baringo County. Moreover, the study targeted officers working in Baringo County and, officials of water development projects. Cluster sampling was used to narrow down the region (based on wards) after which systematic sampling helped to pick the final respondents. Simple random sampling was to select the wards from which data was collected. To choose respondents from among the departmental employees and water project officials, stratified sampling was employed based on their roles and positions in governance. A total of 158 observations were included in the analysis, with a model fit showing a significant overall effect (LR chi2(28) = 128.31, p < 0.001) and a pseudo-R-squared value of 0.6145. Overall, the findings highlight the importance of community-based communication strategies and addressing access barriers to improve youth involvement in water development initiatives.
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