2023 IRSK Annual Conference

Dr. Rosa Ko spoke on the panel entitled “The Evolving Role of Think Tanks in International Relations and Diplomacy: Prospects, Opportunities and Challenges” which was part of the 2023 IRSK Annual Conference. Other panel members included Prof. Peter Kagwanja and Prof. Macharia Munene and the session was moderated by Prof. Kasaijja Apuuli. The discussant was Dr. Andrea Prah.

The conference was organized by the International Relations Society of Kenya (IRSK) and supported by COMESA and ACCORD. It sought to bridge theory and practice in international relations and diplomacy and will bring together key government officials, diplomats, scholars, policymakers, business leaders, media, and civil society amongst others from the COMESA region and beyond.

Collaboration with Postgraduate Students from the LSE’s Department of International Development

SRI is sponsoring a Postgraduate Student Consultancy Project entitled “Does EdTech have a Role in Improving Kenya’s Learning Outcomes Amongst Primary and Secondary Students?”

We are working with Maty Ngom, Marta Perich-Pallaruelo and Oliver Walker from the LSE’s Department of International Development and the research is being supervised by Dr. Rosa Ko. The final report will be finished in March 2022.

COVID-19 Research Response

We are currently pursuing funding opportunities for research related to the COVID-19 pandemic unfolding in East Africa. Areas of particular interest/expertise include:

  • Education (assessing virtual learning and educational inequality)

  • Poverty trap (assessing the impact of the pandemic on female-headed households living in informal settlements)

  • Labor market (assessing the impact of the pandemic on employment opportunities amongst Kenya’s vulnerable youth)

Our preferred research methodology includes remote data collection through surveys and virtual key informant interviews, coupled with rigorous statistical analysis.