| dc.description.abstract | The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of crime on the performance of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Garissa town. The study conducted in the month of July, 2013 was guided by four objectives revolving on the extent to which early closure affected business performance, the extent to which looting of items and employment of security guards affected business in Garissa and strategies to curb crime rates. A descriptive survey design was employed. The population consisted of all the estimated 500 people operating small businesses in Garissa. From the population of 500, a sample of 217 people was drawn from the population to constitute the sample size. Stratified random sampling was used to sample participants in the study. A questionnaire was used as data collection tool and was administered by research assistants to consented participants. The above study instrument was tested through a pilot study in five of the SMEs that were not to take part in the main study. Out of the 217 questionnaires given to the respondents, 217 were returned making the questionnaire return rate 100%. This was possible because the questionnaires were administered and the research assistants waited for the respondents to fill them and picked them immediately. Data was analyzed using SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Scientists) software and presented using frequency tables. Tests on data revealed that there was a significant direct relationship between closing early and business performance. This implied that closing early of the businesses affected the performance of businesses. The results led to rejection of the null hypothesis that early closing does not affect the performance of the businesses in Garissa town. There was a positive relationship between looting and business performance which was significant. This implied that the looting of items in Garissa town affected the performance of businesses. The results of the study led to the rejection of the null hypothesis that looting of business items did not affect business performance at Garissa town. Tests also showed that there was direct relationship between employment of guards and business performance which was significant. This meant that the employment of guards affected the performance of the business because even with the presence of guards the crime still persisted therefore business people incurred losses on paying the guards whose presence did not deter crime. From the results, business operators had adopted many strategies of countering crime in Garissa. This included closing the businesses early and dashing for safety, collecting intelligence information and passing it over to the security organs. The results confirmed that crime had affected Small and Medium Enterprises in Garissa town to an extent of 71% and even up to 99% for others. It is recommended that security should be beefed up so that businesses can open beyond 3.00 pm to give business persons/stakeholders ample time to trade their wares and maximise profit. Government security agencies should investigate root causes of crime in Garissa town and develop ways of fixing crime. Even though security guards had contributed little in fighting crime in Garissa, there is need for the government to react proactively and build capacity of the guards. | en_US |
