GREEN INNOVATIVENESS AND PERFORMANCE OF SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES IN THE PUBLIC TRANSPORT SECTOR IN NAIROBI METROPOLIS, KENYA

Abstract

Investors in the public transport sector in Nairobi incur high maintenance costs due to the petroleum products used by their vehicles and this has had a negative effect on the financial performance of the SMEs. This research was done to establish the influence of environmentally mindful innovation on the performance of public transportation SMEs in Nairobi Metropolis, Kenya. The authors applied a descriptive survey research design and were able to get 334 people in the Nairobi Metropolis area; being investors, route managers with the Super Metro and Metro Trans Sacco’s. Three variants were used in the sampling that include stratified sampling technique, simple random, and purposive sampling technique. Validity and reliability of the primary data were confirmed through the application of a questionnaire that had a structure. Secondary data in the form of financial annual reports of the years 2019 to 2024 was also gathered using a data collecting form. The performance indicators had been provided in these reports like total assets, return on equity and return on assets. The findings showed that green innovativeness had a positive correlation with performance of SMEs in the public transport sector in Nairobi Metropolis (0.685**). The regression results indicated that green innovativeness showed a strong positive and significant relationship with the performance (β = 0.806, t=6.974, p = 0.000). The study recommends that the management should provide trainings for its managers to enhance their managerial innovation