Influence of Knowledge Acquisition Practices on the Performance of County Development Projects in Meru County Government

Abstract

Public infrastructure projects have progressed at a moderate rate since independence. The information provided by the Kenyan government in 2014 regarding their vision for 2030, aiming to make Kenya an internationally competitive and prosperous nation, shows that the slow progress in implementing public infrastructure projects has resulted in inadequate road networks, underdeveloped public facilities, a lack of connectivity between rural areas and industrial hubs, insufficient measures to mitigate challenges in agricultural regions, and a decline in formerly thriving industries. County governments face a significant challenge in effectively utilizing knowledge management within project management to maximize their outcomes. This research aimed to ascertain whether knowledge acquisition practices influences performance of county development projects in Meru County Government. The research was conducted in a descriptive manner. It targeted a total of 139 respondents from nine Sub-counties in Meru County, including members of county assemblies (MCAs), sub-county departmental heads, project management committee members, and county chief officers. A sample of 103 individuals was selected from the population to participate in the survey. Structured questionnaires were used as the primary research tool to collect data from the population. The responses were coded and categorized accordingly. The data collected was inputted into SPSS 27.0 and MS Excel for further computational analysis. The study revealed a strong correlation coefficient, with an R value of 0.897, indicating a high level of correlation between the variables. The adjusted R-squared value, which was 0.801, suggested that variations in county development projects were significantly influenced by the independent variable. The study's findings suggest that knowledge acquisition had a positive impact on the performance of the county development projects in Meru County. To enhance this positive influence, the study recommends that the public service engage with technical experts in specific fields for knowledge creation, emphasize the value of employees, organize formal training sessions for new knowledge creation, plan seminars for knowledge sharing, and ensure that staff members are trained in diverse tasks to facilitate information exchange. Furthermore, it is recommended that training programs encompass a wide range of tasks and duties to promote knowledge sharing among staff.