ABSTRACT
Agricultural based projects play a major part in sustaining domestic and regional economic growth and are important agents for alleviating poverty in developing countries. Utilization of technology in agricultural based projects however remains an issue of concern to researchers, government and project stakeholders. Recent studies have demonstrated that technology play a pivotal role in the performance of agricultural based projects. The purpose of this study was to establishing the effect of technology on performance of drip irrigation projects in Matanya location Laikipia County. The study was guided by four specific objectives; to establish the extent to which utilization of communication technology influence the performance of drip irrigation projects, to ascertain the influence of cost tracking technology on the performance of drip irrigation projects, to establish the extent to which utilization of time tracking technology influence the performance of drip irrigation projects and to establish the influence of the use of quality assurance tools on the performance of drip irrigation projects in Matanya location. The study used a descriptive research design. This design is best suited as it gives an exhaustive analysis of the situation as it determines and reports the way things are in terms of possible behavior, attitude, values and characteristics. The target population of this study was the officials and beneficiaries of the projects in the study. The study targeted 66 respondents who are employees of drip irrigation projects within Matanya location, Laikipia County. The sample size was drawn from all the stakeholders working in drip irrigation projects in Matanya, Laikipia. The study employed a questionnaire to collect primary data. After the data was collected, it was cleaned and analyized using muiltiple regression model. Data tables was used to present frequencies and percentages based on each variable or indicator. Quantitative data was derived from the closed-ended questions in the questionnaire. Quantitative data was presented in tables and graphs and explanation was presented in prose. The study found out that there is significant relationship between use if IT tools and project performance. From the results presented, it is concluded that the use of IT tools during project monitoring has positive relationship on the performance of drip irrigation projects in Matanya location, Laikipia County. The study recommended that organizations should incorporate Information technology tools in project monitoring for the success of the project performance. Further studies need to be carried out to understand the specific relationships between each of the IT tools’ use and the project performance