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<=KNEC Diploma in ICT module 1 Communication Skills past paper: July 2018
Read the passage below and then answer the questions that follow it.
Kenya is one of the few countries in the world that is endowed with different climatic conditions, ranging from temperate climate to tropical deserts and all the conditions in-between. This means that the country has everything it needs to guarantee food security for its citizens. Despite this, Kenya faces food insecurity.
The food insecurity in Kenya can be attributed to a number of factors. Top on the list is the sinability to use natural resources exhaustively. For example, Kenya has relatively vast territory covering more that 58 million hectares, but only slightly more than 5 million hectares are cultivated. This means that millions of hectares of arable land lie idle while millions of people starve every year due to food shortage. Besides, Kenya has an elaborate network of surface and underground water systems. However, the main rivers have been allowed to perpetually drain into the sea or other territories. Inability to use such resources means that serious opportunities to improve food output in the country have been wasted.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the country's abundance is seen in the 164 sub-basins with seasonal river systems. Kenya is a land where people continue to sit on huge amounts of underground water. For example, Turkana County, which is usually among the hardest hit by drought, hosts the Lotikipi Basin Aquifer System. The system is estimated to have two hundred and fifty billion cubic meters of water, which, according to scientists, is naturally replenished at the rate of 3.4 billion cubic meters every year. This water lies unutilized, while the country depends heavily on rain for food production. This dependency on rain fed agriculture contributes to food insecurity whenever the rains are inadequate.
Although rainfall patterns in Kenya are not uniform, experts say that the country receives 365.5 cubic meters of rain annually. Every cubic meter is estimated to be enough to offer a life time supply to 70,000 people. Despite this abundance, the country is labelled "water scarce" since little effort has been made to harvest rain water in most parts of the country. As a result, most of the water goes to waste instead of being utilized in agriculture thus contributing to food shortage. Another factor that has contributed to food shortage is that food production has either stagnated or declined due to reduced acreage under cultivation. For instance, by the beginning of 2014, the country's total maize production stood at 2.8 million tonnes. This necessitated the importation of 900,000 tonnes of maize to cater for the deficit. The situation is worse in the wheat sub-sector where the national production has stagnated at 350,000 tonnes against a local annual demand of 1.5 million tonnes.
In addition, many failed harvests in Kenya are caused by pests such as desert locusts and crop diseases. Over the last few years, maize plantations in Kenya's bread basket of Uasin Gishu and Trans Nzoia have been attacked by diseases leading to little or no harvest for the farmers. Lack of comprehensive emergency plans further worsens the food security situation in Kenya. On several occasions, the country has been accused of lack of preparedness to handle widespread crop failure. Besides, cash crop dependency in most agricultural areas threatens the size of land under cultivation. Although the Kenya govemment continues to encourage farmers to grow cash crops, the situation puts food security at high risk because many farmers end up not producing enough food to feed the nation. Moreover, Kenya, like most Third World countries, has continued to experience rapid population growth. This has caused land subdivisions making it uneconomical for agribusiness.
In order to minimize food insecurity, stakeholders comprising of representatives from various ministries, county governments, non-governmental organizations and other development partners of Kenya should come up with short and long term measures to address food and water shortage in the country. Such measures should not only aim at increasing food production, but also ensure that the country uses its natural resources wisely. The measures taken should also ensure that the country has adequate food reserves to mitigate food shortages.
Adapted from: 'Daily Nation Wednesday 30 November, 2016.
a) State the meaning of each of the following words and phrases as used in the passage:
i) endowed;
(ii) lie idle;
(iii) hardest hit;
(iv) deficit;
(v) handle;
(vi) comprising of
b) In about 140 words, and according to the passage, explain the factors that have led to food insecurity in Kenya.
Kenya is one of the few countries in the world that is endowed with different climatic conditions, ranging from temperate climate to tropical deserts and all the conditions in-between. This means that the country has everything it needs to guarantee food security for its citizens. Despite this, Kenya faces food insecurity.
The food insecurity in Kenya can be attributed to a number of factors. Top on the list is the sinability to use natural resources exhaustively. For example, Kenya has relatively vast territory covering more that 58 million hectares, but only slightly more than 5 million hectares are cultivated. This means that millions of hectares of arable land lie idle while millions of people starve every year due to food shortage. Besides, Kenya has an elaborate network of surface and underground water systems. However, the main rivers have been allowed to perpetually drain into the sea or other territories. Inability to use such resources means that serious opportunities to improve food output in the country have been wasted.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the country's abundance is seen in the 164 sub-basins with seasonal river systems. Kenya is a land where people continue to sit on huge amounts of underground water. For example, Turkana County, which is usually among the hardest hit by drought, hosts the Lotikipi Basin Aquifer System. The system is estimated to have two hundred and fifty billion cubic meters of water, which, according to scientists, is naturally replenished at the rate of 3.4 billion cubic meters every year. This water lies unutilized, while the country depends heavily on rain for food production. This dependency on rain fed agriculture contributes to food insecurity whenever the rains are inadequate.
Although rainfall patterns in Kenya are not uniform, experts say that the country receives 365.5 cubic meters of rain annually. Every cubic meter is estimated to be enough to offer a life time supply to 70,000 people. Despite this abundance, the country is labelled "water scarce" since little effort has been made to harvest rain water in most parts of the country. As a result, most of the water goes to waste instead of being utilized in agriculture thus contributing to food shortage. Another factor that has contributed to food shortage is that food production has either stagnated or declined due to reduced acreage under cultivation. For instance, by the beginning of 2014, the country's total maize production stood at 2.8 million tonnes. This necessitated the importation of 900,000 tonnes of maize to cater for the deficit. The situation is worse in the wheat sub-sector where the national production has stagnated at 350,000 tonnes against a local annual demand of 1.5 million tonnes.
In addition, many failed harvests in Kenya are caused by pests such as desert locusts and crop diseases. Over the last few years, maize plantations in Kenya's bread basket of Uasin Gishu and Trans Nzoia have been attacked by diseases leading to little or no harvest for the farmers. Lack of comprehensive emergency plans further worsens the food security situation in Kenya. On several occasions, the country has been accused of lack of preparedness to handle widespread crop failure. Besides, cash crop dependency in most agricultural areas threatens the size of land under cultivation. Although the Kenya govemment continues to encourage farmers to grow cash crops, the situation puts food security at high risk because many farmers end up not producing enough food to feed the nation. Moreover, Kenya, like most Third World countries, has continued to experience rapid population growth. This has caused land subdivisions making it uneconomical for agribusiness.
In order to minimize food insecurity, stakeholders comprising of representatives from various ministries, county governments, non-governmental organizations and other development partners of Kenya should come up with short and long term measures to address food and water shortage in the country. Such measures should not only aim at increasing food production, but also ensure that the country uses its natural resources wisely. The measures taken should also ensure that the country has adequate food reserves to mitigate food shortages.
Adapted from: 'Daily Nation Wednesday 30 November, 2016.
a) State the meaning of each of the following words and phrases as used in the passage:
i) endowed;
(ii) lie idle;
(iii) hardest hit;
(iv) deficit;
(v) handle;
(vi) comprising of
b) In about 140 words, and according to the passage, explain the factors that have led to food insecurity in Kenya.
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Questions List:
1. List three aspects of interpersonal communication which may indicate formal relations between the sender and the receiver.
2. State three uses of feedback to the sender of a message.
3. List three components of a grammatically correct sentence.
4. Outline four sections of a curriculum vitae.
5. List four types of meetings that may be held in an organization.
6. Outline three functions of an appraisal interview in an organization.
7. State three items that may be included in the preliminary pages of a long report.
8. State three ways in which a speaker may enhance the understanding of a speech.
9. State two limitations of non-verbal communication.
10. List four advantages of using visual communication when making a presentation.
11. Explain four ways in which advancement in technology has enhanced effectiveness of communication in organizations.
12. Describe four external stakeholders with whom an organization may communicate.
13. The organization you work for as an administrative assistant has been receiving negative media publicity over the last three months. You have been asked by the management to investigate the issue. Assume that you have completed your investigation and write a report incorporating recommendations.
14. You work as the Logistics Manager at Brandon Limited. Lately, the firm which provides you with cleaning services has been doing a poor job. Write a complaint letter to the management of the firm.
15. Outline three reasons why organizations hold meetings.
16. Read the passage below and then answer the questions that follow it. Kenya is one of the few countries in the world that is endowed with different climatic conditions, ranging from temperate climate to tropical deserts and all the conditions in-between. This means that the country has everything it needs to guarantee food security for its citizens. Despite this, Kenya faces food insecurity. The
1. List three aspects of interpersonal communication which may indicate formal relations between the sender and the receiver.
2. State three uses of feedback to the sender of a message.
3. List three components of a grammatically correct sentence.
4. Outline four sections of a curriculum vitae.
5. List four types of meetings that may be held in an organization.
6. Outline three functions of an appraisal interview in an organization.
7. State three items that may be included in the preliminary pages of a long report.
8. State three ways in which a speaker may enhance the understanding of a speech.
9. State two limitations of non-verbal communication.
10. List four advantages of using visual communication when making a presentation.
11. Explain four ways in which advancement in technology has enhanced effectiveness of communication in organizations.
12. Describe four external stakeholders with whom an organization may communicate.
13. The organization you work for as an administrative assistant has been receiving negative media publicity over the last three months. You have been asked by the management to investigate the issue. Assume that you have completed your investigation and write a report incorporating recommendations.
14. You work as the Logistics Manager at Brandon Limited. Lately, the firm which provides you with cleaning services has been doing a poor job. Write a complaint letter to the management of the firm.
15. Outline three reasons why organizations hold meetings.
16. Read the passage below and then answer the questions that follow it. Kenya is one of the few countries in the world that is endowed with different climatic conditions, ranging from temperate climate to tropical deserts and all the conditions in-between. This means that the country has everything it needs to guarantee food security for its citizens. Despite this, Kenya faces food insecurity. The
