Community Monitoring and Project Resilience under Funding Uncertainty in Community-Based Projects in Kajiado County, Kenya.

Abstract

Community-based projects are critical in advancing socio-economic development in marginalized regions of Kenya, contributing to improved access to water, healthcare, education and livelihood opportunities. In Kajiado County, which hosts about 255 community-based projects and 53 youth groups supported by government agencies, NGOs and international development partners, nearly 40–45% of projects experience delays or interruptions owing to funding inconsistencies and up to 65% struggle after donor withdrawal. Community monitoring has emerged as a key mechanism for enhancing accountability, transparency and resilience, yet its influence on project sustainability under financial instability remains inadequately understood. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the effect of community monitoring on project resilience under funding uncertainty in community-based projects in Kajiado County, Kenya. It specifically assessed the influence of frequency of tracking, citizen feedback mechanisms, data literacy levels and inclusivity of monitoring committees on project resilience. The study was anchored on the Participatory Development Theory, Stakeholder Theory, Adaptive Management Theory and Human Capital Theory. A descriptive and explanatory research design was adopted, targeting 32 major donor-funded community-based projects and 648 stakeholders comprising project committee members, beneficiaries, NGO representatives, local administrators and youth group leaders. A sample of 87 respondents was determined using Nassiuma's formula and selected through stratified random sampling. Primary data were collected using a structured questionnaire, and both descriptive and inferential statistical methods, namely Pearson correlation and multiple regression analysis, were used to analyse the data, which were presented in tables and discussed. The findings revealed that the four dimensions of community monitoring jointly explained 45.6% of the variation in project resilience. Citizen feedback mechanisms had the strongest positive and significant effect on project resilience, followed by data literacy levels and frequency of tracking, while inclusivity of monitoring committees had a positive and significant but comparatively weaker effect. The study, therefore, recommends that community-based projects should standardize monitoring and reporting schedules, ensure timely processing of community feedback, build stakeholders' capacity in data analysis and digital monitoring tools, and promote meaningful participation of marginalized groups in monitoring committees so as to strengthen project resilience under funding uncertainty in Kajiado County.