Author's Name:	Harwood Isabwa Kajirwa
Subject Area:	Social Science and Humanities
Subject	Accounting
Section	Research Paper

Debt, ROA

This study sought to find out whether the use of debt in a firms debt structure affects firm performance. A survey of commercial banks listed on Nairobi Securities Exchange in Kenya. The specific objective was to determine the effects of debt on firm performance. The study used a longitudinal research design in collection of data. A target population of 11 commercial banks was considered in the study. The data was analyzed using Statistical package of social studies version 16.0. The data was analyzed using inferential statistics; correlation and regression model. The study found that debt negatively affects firm performance though not statistically significant as measured by ROA (ß = -.442, p-value =0.242 which is more than a = 0.05). The conclusion of the study was that the use of debt in a firms capital structure negatively affects the performance of commercial banks in Kenya though not statistically significant. The management of sugar firms should identify alternative low risk sources of financing to swap with debt financing.