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    Electronic records management in selected government ministries and parastatals in Zambia.
    (The University of Zambia, 2025) Muntanga, Elijah
    This study aimed at investigating electronic records management in government ministries and parastatals in Zambia. The study’s specific objectives were to: establish the extent to which government ministries and parastatals in Zambia keep e-records, establish if there is a legal framework, policies and standards governing e-records management, assess the level of knowledge and training of staff in e-records management, determine the ICT infrastructure available for keeping e-records, and establish the possible challenges for e-records management. Employing the Technology-Organisation-Environment (TOE) framework as a guiding theoretical lens, this quantitative study adopted a survey research design to collect data from 50 purposively selected government ministries and parastatals in Zambia. Hand-delivered questionnaires were used to gather data from records officers, registry clerks, or officers responsible for records management within these institutions. The data collected was subsequently analysed quantitatively using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software version 23. The findings of the study established that 76% of government ministries and parastatals in Zambia keep e-records which include emails, policy documents, minutes of meetings, court proceedings, memos, reports, official speeches, contracts, press statements, tax invoices, workshops/conferences, and business plans. However, a significant portion of these e-records were found to be stored on personal computers as evidenced by 50% of government ministries and parastatals in Zambia. The findings further show that the adoption and use of electronic records management systems in government ministries and parastatals in Zambia is not widespread. Only 9.5% of government ministries and parastatals in Zambia have deployed Electronic Document and Records Management Systems (EDRMS) commercial software such as the Total Records and Information Management (TRIM) and HP Records Manager. The findings also revealed that Zambia has relevant legislative frameworks to support e-records management which include the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act of 2021, and the Electronic Government Act of 2021. However, the majority 86% of government ministries and parastatals in Zambia were ignorant about the existence of these laws. Further, it has also been established that Zambia has a Public Service Records Management Policy and the Registry Service Manual to guide the management of records within the entire public service. However,the majority 76.2% of government ministries and parastatals in Zambia were not familiar with these records management tools. Additionally, it has also been revealed that considerably high
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    Exploring the realisation of early childhood education implementation in the education skills and sector plan in Zambia.
    (The University of Zambia, 2025) Nsamya, Rita
    The purpose of this study was to explore the implementation of Early Childhood Education in line with the Education Sector and Skills Plan as it has implications on policy analysis and implementation which will bring recognition to the state of ECE in Zambia. The research study was underpinned by Edward III’s theorizing approach or policy implementation theory which lies on the premise that if a policy needs to be effectively and efficiently implemented, the implementers not only have to know what to do and have the ability to carry out the policy, but also have the intention to implement the policy. This research applied a qualitative approach that used a descriptive narrative design. The study sample included thirteen (13) participants whom were officials from the Ministry of General Education and from the Directorate of Early Childhood Education to constitute the sample for the analysis. Under purposive sampling- typical sampling techniques were used to sample the participants. Data was generated using interviews and document analysis. It was then analysed qualitatively using thematic analysis techniques based on the emerging themes from the study. The findings of the study sought to suggest that little had been done in terms of construction of ECE schools as the ESSP recommended, as in the past years funding allocated to ECE in the National budget was not enough. Furthermore, some parents in rural areas are still not convinced of the importance of ECE. The study further revealed that most of the challenges experienced in the implementation of ECE are as a result of fiscal challenges- which have resulted into a small number of well-constructed schools, lack of teachers in schools and unavailability of data on progress of ECE. Participants further added that partnerships were being formulated with International Organizations that have come on board to spread and develop the sector. The study recommended strategies which included the government constructing appropriate Infrastructure for better ECE practices, instead of using infrastructure which was designed for children above the age of six. ECE class-sizes and child-teacher ratios must be considered when enrolling children for quality education provision so as to produce desirable results was also another recommendation and lastly, the need for ECE centres to have active partnerships with parents which accommodate their needs.
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    The role of smartcare electronic health records system in the delivery of health services: case of first-level hospitals in Lusaka district, Zambia.
    (The University of Zambia, 2025) Ngoma, Misozi
    The study investigated the role of the SmartCare Electronic Health Records System in the delivery of Health Services in five (5) First-level Hospitals in Lusaka District. The study adopted a qualitative research design, where twenty-five (25) registry personnel comprising twenty-two (22) registry clerks and three (3) registry supervisors, who were deemed to be key Informants, were interviewed using an in-depth interview guide. The study sought to: (i) ascertain the registry personnel’s experiences and perceptions of using the SmartCare system for managing healthcare records, (ii) determine the policy framework for managing records within the SmartCare health system, (iii) ascertain the extent to which SmartCare has enhanced service delivery, and (iv) explore the challenges faced in the implementation of the SmartCare health system. Data were analyzed thematically. The results of the study showed that registry personnel in Lusaka’s first- level hospitals view the SmartCare system positively, highlighting its efficiency in record management. It enhances data accuracy, accessibility, and retrieval, reducing physical storage needs and streamlining patient registration. Research findings also showed that the implementation of SmartCare had improved operations in the healthcare system in many ways, including improved service delivery, enhanced storage of patients’ records, easy access and retrieval of records, tracking of patients’ medical records, and an improved referral system. The study further established that registry personnel at first-level hospitals had never attended formal records management training, and no formal ICT training was offered to records management staff in the institutions. This negatively affected the management of records in the facilities. The registry personnel at first-level hospitals were not aware of existing policies and standards for the administration of their work. The challenges faced by registry personnel regarding the utilization of SmartCare in their service delivery included system failure, erratic power supply (load shedding), lack of staff training, inadequate computers, poor network connectivity, and the unavailability of Smartcards. The study recommended that the Ministry of Health consider acquiring more computers for all registries for use with SmartCare, sensitising registry personnel on the existing e-records management policies, training the Registry Personnel in the use of SmartCare, and ensuring a constant supply of Smartcards to patients. The study suggests that hospitals planning to implement the SmartCare EHR system can use the outcomes of this study to learn lessons that would aid in successful implementation.
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    Exploring leadership styles and their influence on academic disparities: a comparative study in high and underperforming public secondary schools Lusaka district, Zambia.
    (The University of Zambia, 2025) Kibwana, Sultan
    The coexistence of underperforming and high-performing public secondary schools raises critical questions about the factors contributing to the persistent academic performance gap, particularly the role of leadership styles in shaping academic outcomes. Despite various interventions by the government of Zambia to address educational disparities, these gaps continue to persist, highlighting the need for a deeper understanding of the leadership factors at play. Moreover, a significant research gap remains in exploring the mechanisms through which leadership practices influence academic disparities, especially in terms of school climate, teacher motivation, and student engagement, which are vital for improving academic outcomes. Therefore, this study sought to investigate the relationship between leadership styles and academic disparities in Lusaka District, Zambia, with a focus on their influence on academic performance. The study was guided by three objectives: To establish the main leadership styles used by the headteachers in selected high-performing and underperforming public secondary schools, determine the contribution of leadership practices toward the academic disparities between high performing and underperforming public schools, and identify potential areas for improvement in leadership practices within underperforming public secondary schools in Lusaka District, Zambia. Employing a mixed-methods approach, quantitative data was collected through standardised semi structured questionnaires administered to 80 teachers and 200 students, sampled through systematic random sampling. While, qualitative data complemented the quantitative data, including interviews with 8 headteachers and 8 deputy headteachers obtained by purposive sampling. The data obtained by the qualitative method of data collection were coded by a thematic approach, then categorised, tabulated, and arranged under themes and subthemes whereas the quantitative data were analysed using using IBM SPSS Statistics version 27 (SPSS Inc., Chicago IL). The thematic analysis of the study data revealed key themes related to leadership styles and their influence on academic disparities, including main leadership styles attributed by the headteachers in high-performing and underperforming public secondary schools, contribution of leadership practices toward the academic disparities, and potential areas for improvements in leadership practices within underperforming public schools. The findings revealed that headteachers in these schools employed different leadership styles, including instructional, democratic, servant, situational, and authoritative leadership. However, the leadership styles used varied between high performing and underperforming public secondary schools, influencing leadership practices and academic performance. The study further revealed that leadership practices played a crucial role in either mitigating or exacerbating academic disparities. High-performing public secondary schools demonstrated strong leadership practices, including effective communication of vision and strategic plans, inclusive decision-making, delegation of tasks, instructional support and professional development, and efficient resource management. In contrast, underperforming schools struggled with weak leadership practices, limiting collaboration, teacher engagement, and student support. Additionally, handling academic disparities was a major focus, with interventions such as remedial programs, guidance and counseling, and extracurricular activities were effectively implemented in high-performing public secondary schools while, headteachers in underperforming schools struggled to implement these interventions effectively due to leadership challenges. Their efforts were often hindered by resistance to change, the nature of students, and over-enrollment, further widening academic disparities. It could be concluded that leadership practices employed by headteachers in public secondary schools contribute to academic disparities. In high-performing schools, headteachers demonstrated leadership practices that fostered teacher development, collaboration, and adaptability, resulting in improved academic outcomes. In contrast, underperforming schools were characterised by rigid, autocratic leadership, which hindered teacher engagement, innovation, and student support, ultimately contributing to ongoing academic challenges. It was recommended that leadership’s knowledge and leadership practice should be closely integrated to mitigate academic disparities in public schools effectively. Furthermore, gender roles in leadership and their impacts on academic disparities should be assessed by comparing high-performing and underperforming public schools.
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    An Investigation of the impact on electronic records management on service delivery in the department of immigration in Zambia.
    (The University of Zambia, 2024) Kapanda, Mutale
    This study sought to investigate the impact of electronic records management on service delivery in the Department of Immigration. Specifically, the study had the following five objectives to achieve at the end of the study: to establish employee’s experience with the electronic records management adopted in the department of Immigration: to determine the extent to which implementation of the ERMS had improved storage of records at the department of Immigration: to assess the extent to which ERMS had improved accessibility and retrieval of records: to investigate the impact of ERMS on service delivery at the department and lastly to identify the challenges arising from use of ERMS in the department. This study used a case study research design using a single cross-sectional mixed methods approach meaning both qualitative and quantitative data was collected for the study. Data was collected from a sample of 110 respondents drawn from target population of approximately 200 staff who interact with the electronic management system (ERMS). A structured questionnaire consisting of close-ended and open-ended questionswas administered on 100 respondents and oral interviews conducted on 10 key informants that were purposively selected for this study. Quantitative data was analysed using the IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences (IBM SPSS) version 26 while qualitative data was analysed using thematic techniques. The study established that automation has greatly improved the retrieval and accessibility of records as responded by 86.9% of staff surveyed. Further, automation has reduced storage costs and eliminated misfiling and loss of records, resulting improved service delivery. In. Furthermore, results from the study reveal that in terms of improving storage of records, efforts to have full storage off site back-up of records has equally been underway with SMART Zambia. This is to ensure that there is a full recovery plan in times of disasters. In addition,the findings revealed that 86.9% of the respondents were of the view that the implementation of ERMS had improved accessibility and retrieval time of records while 84.5% indicated implementation of ERMS had made it possible for same record to accessed by several users simultaneously. The findings from the fourth objective indicate 90.0% of the respondents rated the speed at which work was being done after implementation of ERMS was faster as opposed to 8.4% who felt it was slow. The major challenges from the studyas revealedby the respondents included lack of fully trained personnel, potential security breaches at , inadequate funding, weak implementation strategies, poor Internet connectivity and frequent power outages, inadequate computer facilities. Other challenges include staff resistance to change. Based on the findings and discussions, the study recommends that the Department of Immigration increases funding to purchase more computers and other related equipment; provides regular staff training based on a thorough needs assessment for all levels of staff;revision of current records management policy to incorporate electronic record management issues spelling out retrieval, accessibility;andimprove backup system to enhance safety and security of electronic records.