Foreword

The first article “Anglican Clergy-Laity Pension Scheme: Investment Opportunity for Uganda Christian University to Walk the Dream – ‘A Centre of Excellence in the Heart of Africa”, article examines the pivotal role that Uganda Christian University can play to influence clergy and laity in the Anglican church of Uganda to save funds for their old age life survival and how the academic institution can utilize the accumulated savings to influence academic institution programmes expansion and financial sustainability.  The second article, “A Critique of Christian Content Creators’ Influence on Ugandan Christian Youth from the Christian Spirituality Perspective”, examines the influence of Christian content creators (CCCs) on the spirituality of Ugandan youth and how they influence identity construction and spirituality within a non-Western developing culture.  The third article “Effectiveness of Existing Ecumenical Efforts in Promoting Unity and Collaboration among Churches in Ondo State, Nigeria”, evaluates the effectiveness of existing ecumenical efforts in promoting unity and collaboration among churches in Ondo State, Nigeria.  The fourth article “Availability Bias and Investment Decisions of Selected Small and Medium Enterprises in Nairobi C”, aimed at assessing the influence of availability bias on the investment decisions of selected small and medium-sized businesses in Nairobi County, Kenya.  The fifth article, “Gender Politics and Deconstruction in the Light of the Polemics of Ephesians 5:21-33 in Koro Christian Community of Nasarawa State”, explores the dynamics of cultural hegemony within Koro communities in Nasarawa, Nigeria, particularly focusing on marital relationships. The study draws inspiration from Ephesians 5:21-33, a biblical passage often cited to establish traditional gender roles in marriage.  The sixth article, “Green Procurement and Responsiveness of Large-Scale Manufacturing Firms in Nairobi City County, Kenya”, investigated the impact of green procurement on the responsiveness of large-scale manufacturing firms in Nairobi City County, Kenya, with a focus on the chemical and metal manufacturing sectors.  The seventh article, “Perception of Teachers on the Use of Hidden Curriculum in Classroom Management to Meet the Psychosocial Needs of Learners in Middle Primary School in Migwani, Kitui County, Kenya”, investigated the perception of teachers on the use of hidden curriculum in classroom management to meet the psychosocial needs of learners in middle primary school in Migwani, Kitui County, Kenya.  The eighth article, “Priesthood & Remuneration: A Digital Age Challenge for the Anglican Church of Uganda to Skill Clergy to attain Financial Sufficiency”, examined the extent the Anglican Church of Uganda's priests were being remunerated and skilled to attain household financial sufficiency.   The ninth article, “Fostering Agro-Industrial Growth in Kiambu County: A Bottom-Up Approach to Industrialization and Economic Transformation”, investigated the economic viability, infrastructure readiness, and employment potential of county aggregation and industrial parks (CAIPs) in Kiambu County, Kenya, within the framework of agglomeration economies theory. The tenth article, “The Role of Early Supplier Involvement on Performance of Agricultural Projects of Tana and Athi River Development Authority, Kenya”, investigated the relationship between early supplier involvement and performance of agricultural projects of TARDA. The eleventh article “The Haya Ethic Community Understanding of Healing: Christal-societal Perspectives”, examined the existing ethnographic literature, theological texts, historical accounts, and scholarly analyses to understand how healing is conceptualized within Haya society.  The twelfth article “The Role of Ecumenism Towards Interfaith Dialogue in Christian-Muslim Social-Cohesion Initiatives in Benin Republic”, sought to determine the role of ecumenism towards interfaith dialogue in Christian-Muslim Social-Cohesion initiatives in Benin Republic and the role of ecumenism in fostering interfaith dialogue between Christians and Muslims, emphasizing social cohesion initiatives. The thirteenth article, “Primary School Education, Curriculum Africanization, and Community Engagements of Teachers in the Process of Poverty Alleviation in Uganda”, examines the trend of primary school education and the extent the curriculum is Africanized to engage pupils and their parents in staged progressive household income-generating projects, aimed at uplifting the economic standards of households.  The fourteenth article, “Romans 12: 1-2 Vis-à-vis God’s Mission: Revitalizing Church’s Participation and Stimulating Transformation”, examined how missional hermeneutical reading of Romans 12: 1-2, text can be applied to revitalize participation and stimulate transformation of the African church.  The fifteenth article “Stepparents - Stepchildren Relationship Nurture: The Invisible Clerical Role of Religious Leaders in Uganda”, displays the pheromone of step-parenting that has existed since preindustrial Europe. The sixteen article, “Out of the Box: Rethinking Africa Security”, rethinks African security by advocating for nonviolent, community-based, and inclusive approaches that emphasize peace education, digital activism, and economic empowerment, drawing on recent case studies from Kenya, Nigeria, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and incorporating the compelling narratives from the Rethinking Africa Security Conference held at St. Paul University on November 15, 2024.