How African Kinship System Contributes to Corruption in Kenya

Abstract

This paper explored how African kinship system contributes to corruption in Kenya. The research was informed by the Clashing Moral Values Theory. Purposive sampling and random sampling techniques were used to sample respondents from Machakos County. The sample size was 175 respondents. Research instruments used comprised semi-structured interview schedules for the in-depth interviews and self-administered questionnaires with both open and closed-ended questions. Qualitative data was analysed using thematic analysis while quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistics. The study revealed that African kinship system contributes to corruption through nepotism, ethnic cronyism and clientelism. This study provides the Government of Kenya with important information relating to the reasons as to why corruption continues to halt development in Kenya. Moreover, the research elicits scholarly interests on the issue of culture and corruption in Africa.