By GPC Reporter
Former Kisii University Vice-Chancellor Professor John Akama has been featured in the latest edition of the AD Scientific Index, which has entered its 2027 ranking cycle with continuously updated data on researchers worldwide.
The index, which was updated on September 25, 2026, currently covers more than 2.6 million scientists from 221 countries and 24,000 institutions.
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It ranks researchers using bibliometric indicators including H-index, i10-index and citations.
Prof Akama is profiled under Social Sciences, with his academic work associated with tourism and hospitality.
His research interests include tourism management, wildlife management, planning, African development and culture.
The latest index represents a shift from the earlier annual-style rankings towards a continuously updated system.
AD Scientific Index says its 2027 framework is designed to provide a more detailed picture of researchers’ academic positions by considering both career-long and recent research performance.
The platform says its rankings are based on researcher-level bibliometric evidence rather than reputation surveys or institutional prestige.
It also states that H-index, i10-index and citation figures remain independently visible rather than being combined into an undisclosed overall score.
Prof Akama’s academic work has focused heavily on tourism and its relationship with communities, culture, wildlife and development, particularly in Kenya and other developing countries.
Among his notable publications are studies on tourist satisfaction with Kenya’s wildlife safaris, tourism and socio-economic development in Mombasa, tourism education and training, nature-based tourism and the role of government in tourism development.
His research has also contributed to discussions on cultural tourism and the place of African culture and communities in tourism development.
The 2027 edition describes itself as moving “beyond academic positions” towards greater research intelligence, allowing researchers to examine their standing across geographical and disciplinary contexts.
For Prof Akama, whose academic career has spanned tourism, development, culture and natural-resource management, the latest listing provides a current international record of his research footprint.
Away from research, Prof Akama has also been involved in university administration, institution building and the production of books dealing with history, culture, tourism and academic scholarship.
He was the founding Vice-Chancellor of Kisii University after serving as the founding Principal when the institution was still a constituent college of Egerton University.
He took over the college in 2009 and later became Vice-Chancellor when Kisii University received its charter in 2013.
During his decade at the helm, the institution expanded its academic programmes, infrastructure and student population.
The Standard reported that programmes increased from two to 35 by 2010 and later to 200 by 2016, while major facilities including a modern library, ICT centre, laboratories, hostels and lecture halls were developed.
Prof Akama’s administrative experience also included university governance and senior academic leadership before his appointment as Vice-Chancellor.
His contribution to the world of books is equally significant.
His publications include The Gusii of Kenya: Social, Economic, Cultural, Political & Judicial Perspectives, published in 2017, which examines the history, social organisation, culture, politics and traditional institutions of the Gusii people.
In 2019, he published The Untold Story: Gusii Survival Techniques and Resistance to the British Colonial Rule, examining the community’s resistance to colonial conquest and challenging aspects of the established colonial narrative.
He also authored Undeterred: A Rural Boy’s Journey to the Pinnacle of Academia, a personal account of his journey from a rural upbringing to university leadership.
At its launch in 2021, Prof Akama used the occasion to call for greater investment in research, innovation and academic publishing.
His publishing work has also included collaborative scholarship.
In 2024, Akama co-authored The Vanishing Indigenous Heritage of the Abagusii of Western Kenya, a work examining the community’s historical and cultural heritage and the need to preserve sites and traditions for future generations.
In 2023, he was among the scholars behind Scholarly Research: Writing and Publishing into Journals & Books, a work examining the production and dissemination of academic knowledge.
The latest AD Scientific Index listing comes against a career that has combined academic research with university administration and a sustained interest in documenting Kenya’s history, culture and scholarship.
