The 14th African International Business Management Conference (AIBUMA) was held on October 26-27, 2023, during the 6th Annual UoN Research Week. The theme of the AIBUMA conference was "Harnessing Recent Innovations, Research, Technologies, and Development in Business and Management Sciences for Resilience and Sustainability in Society," which was in line with the UoN Research Week theme of "Harnessing Research for Resilience and Sustainability of Communities."
The two-day conference opened with an insightful speech by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research, Innovation, and Enterprise, Professor Margaret Hutchinson. In her address, Prof. Hutchinson underscored the vital importance of the knowledge generated by researchers at the conference, emphasizing its relevance to the contemporary world. She expressed her delight at the success of the conference and extended her gratitude to all the participants for their presence and wished them a successful conference.. Her opening words set the stage for researchers to present their groundbreaking work.
One of the notable researchers, Professor XN Iraki, shared his findings from a 25-year study he had conducted on his former students. Prof. Iraki's research found that most of his students had taken their career path in the field of business while some settled for other businesses.
Another researcher who presented at the conference was Mercy Kihiu, a researcher at the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA). Ms. Kihiu's research focused on the steps that KRA has taken to promote creativity and innovation. She defined creativity as the process of coming up with novel and useful ideas, which are then transformed into innovations.
The conference also featured a presentation by Dr. Geoffrey Monari, the CEO of the University Fund. Dr. Monari spoke about the new funding model for universities in Kenya. He explained that the aim of the new system is to ensure there is equity instead of equality in the allocation of funds.
Dr. Mary Kibuine, a researcher at the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD), also presented at the conference. Dr. Kibuine's research focused on the government's efforts to digitize learning through e-learning. She explained that the government has already taken steps to introduce laptops to pupils in primary schools.
Another interesting research presented at the conference was on the effects of elections on the environment. Dr. Mohammed Yussuf, a researcher at the University of Nairobi, pointed out the negative effects of elections on the environment, such as demonstrations and littering at polling stations. He called for the creation of policies to protect the environment during elections.
The conference concluded with a question-and-answer session where students and lecturers were allowed to ask the researchers questions about their research. The researchers responded to the questions and promised to correct any errors in their work before publishing it.
The 14th African International Business Management Conference was a successful event that brought together researchers from all over Africa to share their findings and discuss the latest trends in business and management. The conference was also a valuable learning experience for the students and lecturers who attended.
