DOI: 10.11648/j.mlr.20261102.17 ISSN: 2637-5680

Ict-enabled Environmental Sustainability in Coastal Communities: Assessing Digital Governance and Blue Economy Development in Mombasa County, Kenya

Joel Charo, Mvurya Mgala
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Coastal communities face increasing environmental challenges; including habitat degradation, pollution, and climate-related shocks that threaten livelihoods built around the ocean economy. Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are increasingly promoted as instruments of environmental governance, yet the extent to which digital governance capacity translates into sustainable blue economy outcomes in African coastal counties remains under-researched. This paper investigates the relationship between ICT-enabled digital governance and environmental sustainability in the context of blue economy development in Mombasa County, Kenya. Grounded in socio-technical systems theory and the public value of information systems perspective, the study adopts an embedded single-case study design combining a cross-sectional household and business survey, key-informant interviews with government and research institutions (NEMA, Mombasa County Government, KMFRI, KWS), and a documentary review of county digital-governance initiatives. The study proposes a Digital Governance Readiness Index (DGRI) integrating four dimensions digital infrastructure, institutional capacity, stakeholder participation, and data-driven decision making, and links these to blue economy outcomes through a conceptual model with six testable propositions. Expected contributions include an evidence-based assessment framework that county governments can use to diagnose governance gaps, a set of policy recommendations for aligning national blue economy strategy with grassroots digital inclusion, and a replicable methodology for other coastal counties. The paper indicates that ICT-enabled sustainability is contingent not merely on technology deployment but on participatory governance structures, inter-agency data sharing, and community digital literacy.

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