The Performance of South African and Kenyan Universities on the World Wide Web: a Web Link Analysis

[Isidro F. Aguillo]

The Performance of South African and Kenyan Universities on the World 
Wide Web: a Web Link Analysis
Omwoyo Bosire Onyancha, Dennis N. Ocholla

Cybermetrics, 11 (2007), Issue 1, Paper 2
http://www.cindoc.csic.es/cybermetrics/articles/v11i1p2.html

The study used Link Analysis to compare Kenyan and South African 
universities according to several Web-based indicators, some of which 
include the number of pages, and the number of in and out-links. The 
authors examined the external out-links in order to determine the 
institutions targeted by South African and Kenyan universities. Also 
investigated were the networks or links between universities. Web Impact 
Factors (WIFs) were calculated and reported in order to compare the 
universities’ web influence. Results indicate that Kenyan universities, 
like most African universities, have embraced the Internet and its 
constructs fairly recently, hence most of their websites are at initial 
stages of construction. Comparatively, South African universities have 
made remarkable progress in their web presence, which is at an advanced 
stage of development, equaling counterparts in more developed countries. 
The study recommends that regional webometric studies be conducted 
periodically in order to investigate and map the web-related 
developments of African universities. It concludes that African 
universities, though not comparable to counterparts in developed 
countries, can have their websites evaluated webometrically.

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Isidro F. Aguillo
isidro @ cindoc.csic.es
Ph:(+34) 91-5635482 ext. 313

Cybermetrics Lab
CINDOC-CSIC
Joaquin Costa, 22
28002 Madrid. SPAIN

www.webometrics.info
www.cindoc.csic.es/cybermetrics
internetlab.cindoc.csic.es
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