ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the dimensions of David W. Brokensha’s applied research by analyzing institutional dynamics and development in the Tana basin, Kenya. It examines the relationships between the major institution in the Tana basin, the Tana and Athi Rivers Development Authority (TARDA), and smaller institutions representing thousands of smallholders. The chapter argues that although TARDA is a regional institution, with regional and local development mandates, its structure and policies are national in orientation. Historically, the agroecological diversity of the Tana basin has led to a very uneven pattern of investment and institutional development; in contrast to most other African basins, development activities and institutions have been concentrated more in the upper than in other parts of the basin. Several important historical events have shaped development activities and institutions in the Tana basin. The most important was the Mau Mau emergency in the 1950s, which forced the colonial state to consider more carefully the development of the African areas.
