Current Institutional Affiliation
Research Fellow, SARChI Chair in Social Policy, University of South Africa

Award Information

Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa: Doctoral Dissertation Completion Fellowship 2017
Institutional Affiliation (at time of award):
University of South Africa
Social Protection Policy Making in Kenya: A Study of the Dynamics of Policy Transfer

My proposal seeks to explore the process of social protection policy-making and the subsequent adoption in Kenya. I am seeking to analyse the process, politics and dynamics by which cash transfers were promoted to Kenya leading to their adoption into the country's social protection programmes. In addition, I seek to analyse the resultant outcome of the adoption onto the country's social policy regime. The research study draws from two cash transfer programmes, the Cash Transfer for Orphans and Vulnerable Children (CT-OVC) which is being implemented in all the counties of Kenya and the Hunger Safety Net Programme (HSNP) under implementation in 4 counties in Northern Kenya - Mandera, Marsabit, Wajir and Turkana . Previous empirical studies on social protection in Kenya have focussed on the impact of the cash transfer programmes, their fiscal viability and sustainability. There is however a gap in understanding how the programmes were transferred and adopted in Kenya. The validation of the research findings will be enhanced and achieved through the use of multiple methods of data collection - conducting key in-depth interviews, participant observation and a review of documents related to the programmes. In addition the findings will be validated based on empirical and theoretical findings from similar research in other countries.

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