Strategic Collaboration Practices and Performance of Busia County Government in Kenya

Strategic collaboration exists when institutions or individuals embark on specific actions to realize mutual benefit. Strategic collaboration promotes collective intelligence by encouraging institutions to make informed decisions and adopt feasible problem-solving techniques. The general purpose of the study was to investigate the relationship between strategic collaboration and the performance of county governments in Kenya using the case of the Busia County Government. Specifically, the study focused on strategic inter-county collaboration; and strategic public-private partnership. The research utilised a descriptive case study research design with a target population of 2,880 county government employees. The research adopted a stratified random sampling technique. The research utilised a sample size of 144 participants. A questionnaire was used to collect primary data while a document analysis guide was used for secondary data collection. Data was analysed using descriptive statistic tools such as frequencies, percentages, means and standard deviations. Inferential statistics such as Pearson's correlation was used to test the existence of the relationship between dependent and independent variables while simple linear regression was used to test cause-effect relationships. From the study findings, it was revealed that strategic inter-collaboration and strategic public-private had a positive relationship with performance. The study concludes that strategic collaboration influences the performance of Busia County Government, Kenya. The study recommends constant consultation, open communication, shared decision making and consolidation of county responsibilities to improve strategic collaboration practices and build devolved units' capacity to achieve desired performance. Keywords: Strategic Collaboration, Inter-Collaboration, Public-Private Partnership, Performance CITATION: Barasa, N. A., & Simiyu, A. (2024). Strategic collaboration practices and performance of Busia County Government in Kenya. The Strategic Journal of Business & Change Management, 11 (2), 602 – 621. http://dx.doi.org/10.61426/sjbcm.v11i2.2919