The School undertakes research in the following thematic areas:

• Public service transformation and service delivery
• Economic planning and development
• Investment for Wealth creation (in agriculture, manufacturing/ industrialization, trade)
• Industrialization – (in agriculture, fishing, mining)
• Local/ decentralized government
• Public enterprise development and management
• Foreign policy and International engagements
• National and regional security
• Social development
• Agriculture and food security
• Environmental governance and climate change

The Centre for Research and Advisory Services has been able to achieve the following:

1. Establishment of a framework for dissemination of research findings which encompasses;
2. Establishment of KSG Press;
3. Introduced East African Journal of Public Affairs (EAJPA);
4. Introduced Occasional Paper Series;
5. Initiated publication of a book titled: Exemplary Public Service Leadership with two manuscripts well underway: “Kenya: A Decade of National Transformation” based on the work of the late President Hon. Mwai Kibaki and “Beyond Zero Campaign,” based on the work of the former First Lady Mama Margaret Kenyatta.

The Centre for Research and Advisory Services has conducted an increasing number of multidisciplinary research across the public sector. This has led to the development of a number of research products such as:

1. Policy briefs to provide evidence-based advisory to the Government of Kenya
2. Case studies for reference and as a source of training materials
3. Position papers to provide facts and make proposals for resolutions of the prevailing conditions
4. Occasional papers that contribute to the debate on specific issues relevant to the public service
5. Working papers series to provide preliminary findings of issues under investigations
6. Journal articles to provide scientific or scholarly evidence-based information published in a peer-reviewed academic journal.

In advancing knowledge sharing and collaboration, the Centre for Research and Advanced Training has established linkages with an increasing number of institutions to undertake collaborative research. Some of these institutions include:

• Chandler Academy for Governance to undertake research
• State Department for Correctional Services, Probation and After Care Service – Ministry of Interior And Coordination of National Government

In fostering research agenda and creating a repository for the School, the Centre for Research and Advanced Training has committed each KSG Campus to initiate research and publication of a resource book:

1. Public Service Innovations in Kenya – Lower Kabete Campus
2. Transformation of Public Sector Human Resource Management Practices in Kenya – Mombasa Campus
3. Social Inclusivity in the Kenyan Public Sector: Policy and Practice – Matuga Campus
4. Toward Food Security and Nutrition in Kenya: Reconciliation of Ideas, Actions, and Outcomes – Embu Campus
5. Transformation of Pastoral Economy for Sustainable Development in the North Rift Region of Kenya – Baringo Campus
6. Cyber-Security in the Public Sector: Global Problems, National Solutions – eLDi