CW-Department of Environmental Health
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Browsing CW-Department of Environmental Health by Author "Koskey, P. K."
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Item The Implications of Water Governance System on Environmental Health in Marginalised Communities in the Arid and Semi-arid Regions in Kenya: The Case of Njemps of Kenya(Joypet Sevices & Printers Ltd., 2004) Yatich, T. T.; Koskey, P. K.Water is not only ecologically complex, but also socially, politically and economically loaded with meaning and opportunity. It forms a vital part of social infrastructure, playing a key role in health, industry, agriculture, energy and general consumption by both humans and beast. It is an essential resource for all forms of life, yet the total amount of water that is available is limited. It is estimated that 80 per cent of the countries of the world suffer from serious water shortages and this is expected to worsen in the coming decades. When this scenario persists, quenching the thirsty of human beings, their enterprises and health would be a dream especially if we will want to protect the resource’s fundamental ecological support systems. The scarcity of water negatively affects the environmental health within marginalized communities because of the relative scarcity compared to that in the high potential areas. One of the causative factors is the adopted governance system on management of this scarcity which directly affect the health of the people. Since independence, the Kenyan Government embarked on intensive water programmes in the rural areas. It financed water development because the physical environmental conditions and economic incapability of the rural populace dictated the system under water and health planning. The paternalistic approach was adopted. State ownership and control over water resources was in itself an impediment to the management of rural water resources and public health. This led to the introduction of the need to involve the community members; the beneficiaries. This was based on the fact that public interests in water resources may subordinate individual property interests and public health. The traditional, command - and – control regulation of water resources was therefore perceived inadequate and negatively impact on public health. The bottom-up approach considered the interests and the rights of landowners or customary users, but still there is need to develop reciprocal relations as a means of balancing private and the varied public interests in this scarce resource. The balancing of the local community, private and the government interests have been realized Marigat Division through the "Distributed Governance" approach. Marigat Division is within an arid and semi-arid region where the resource is scarce and, therefore the achievement of effective allocation regulation and conservation involves a multifaceted approach which emphasizes environmental health..Item Poverty and Environmental Health in Garissa, Kenya: Reflecting the Links(Joypet Sevices & Printers Ltd., 2004) Dekow, M. S.; Koskey, P. K.At independence, the government of Kenya identified poverty, disease, illiteracy and ignorance as obstacles to national development and had to formulate policy strategies, which have been articulated in National Development Plans, Sessional Papers and Task Force Reports. This paved way to establishment of special programs such as Rural Water Supply and Health Promotion. Despite the government 50 efforts, today, over 60% of Kenyans languish in poverty and are victims of environment-related diseases such as malaria, diarrhoea and typhoid. The situation is more deplorable in Garissa District. This paper, therefore, explores the links between poverty and the poor environmental health of the residents of Garissa. Data was collected through literature review, field observation and key informant interviews. The study concludes that poverty leads to poor environmental health and for environmental health to be improved, poverty has to be reduced among the population.Item The Status, Constraints and Environmental Health Implications of Service Provision and Management in Informal Settlements of Eldoret Municipality, Kenya(Joypet Sevices & Printers Ltd., 2004) Letema, S. C.; Koskey, P. K.One of the major challenges facing local authorities in developing countries is how to meet the ever-rising demand for urban environmental services. The problem is prominent in urban informal settlements where service provision and management seems to have failed to cope with rapid expansion and intensification of land-use development. This paper discusses environmental services provision and management in informal settlements of Eldoret Municipality. Stratified random and purposive samplings were used to sample the study sites. Data were collected through the use of questionnaires and urban report cards, interviews, traverse observations and secondary data were also used. Results indicate that there was dismal environmental services provision and management in urban informal settlements of Eldoret, and recommends partnerships in development, extension, operation, and maintenance of environmental services; subcontracting services under built-operate-transfer arrangements; environmental health education; establishment of service tariff distinguishing consumer categories and privatisation.