Determinants of Performance of Water Projects in Chuka/Igambang'ombe Constituency, Tharaka Nithi County, Kenya

Abstract

Performance and success of any given project is pegged to key result areas that are put in place revolving around time, scope and cost. Organizations are realizing the impact that projects and further project management can have on their success. Most water projects implemented in the rural areas to address the problem of water accessibility are observed to be non-operational. The purpose of this study was to assess the determinants of performance of water projects in Chuka/Igambang'ombe Constituency, Kenya. It aimed to establish the influence of stakeholder participation, effect of communication, and explore the effect of project leadership on the performance of the projects. The study was grounded on the stakeholder theory, theory of development communication and theory of constraints. The research employed descriptive research design and the study's target population was 218 people, who consisted of project teams, the local residents, local authority (ward administrators, assistants, chiefs, assistant chiefs) and the representatives of county government in the constituency. The research adopted stratified and systematic random sampling and the primary data was collected using a questionnaire that comprised of open and closed ended questions. SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) was used to produce frequencies, descriptive and inferential statistics which was used to derive conclusions and generalizations regarding the population. Descriptive statistics such as  percentages, mean, frequency, distribution and standard deviation were computed to describe the characteristics of the variables of interest while in  inferential statistics, correlation, multiple regression analysis were used to establish the nature and magnitude of the relationships between the variables and to test the hypothesized relationships. The results of data analysis were presented using figures and tables and the findings showed that, for the water projects to be successful, there was need to involve stakeholders from the onset, have clear communication channels and enhance project leadership. The study therefore recommends that; all stakeholders should be accorded an opportunity to partake in each phase of the project cycle, proper communication should be boosted throughout the implementation of the projects and lastly introduction of effective controls by having clearly defined staff roles.