Author: Editor

Kenya beat rivals South Africa and Egypt on the leading African destinations for international arrivals in a new report released by flight monitoring company, ForwardKeys. The report, which compares flight reservation data from more than 16 million transactions daily, seeks to shed light on the positioning of African destinations on the global tourism map, ahead of the Africa Hotel Investment Forum (AHIF) in October. Kenya contributed to 18.2% of the total arrivals in the period under survey (September 2016-January 2017), as compared to Egypt’s 17.2% and South Africa’s 12.1%. However, despite having one of the continent’s most connected airports, Jomo…

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Last month saw the launch of the much-awaited M-Akiba mobile retail bond, the world’s first mobile government bond, at the National Treasury building. The mobile-based bond finally began trading on 23rd March after being postponed time and time again since its introduction in October 2015. The National Treasury issued the three-year mobile-based bond with an initial target of Sh150 million in its pilot stage. Unlike in the past whereby the government would issue treasury bonds with a minimum investment of Sh50, 000, it now offered a minimum investment of Sh3, 000 making it more affordable to every Kenyan to partake…

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Equity Group has announced that its strategy of going digital is paying off as both the volume and value of transactions have shot up since the launch of the lender’s digital banking strategy in late 2016. The Group, which released its end-of-year results early March said EazzyBiz, the bank’s online cash and liquidity management solution for corporates, had recorded 126,431 transactions as at the end of January this year up from 3,036 transactions that were posted in July 2016, representing a 41-fold growth. The value of transactions on the other hand grew 86 times to stand at Sh25.9 billion up from…

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Farmers in sub-Saharan Africa are set to benefit from a new partnership between World Vision’s microfinance arm, VisionFund International (VisionFund) and non-profit social enterprise, KickStart International (KickStart). The partners have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to provide an integrated solution to enable farmers to access, purchase and implement irrigation systems. With ambitious targets, the partnership anticipates 100,000 farmers (and 400,000 children) will benefit from greater access to water for their crops over the next five years. Following a successful pilot in Zambia last year, where close to 3,000 irrigation pumps were financed, the two organisations are working together to…

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South Africa’s pension fund Public Investment Corporation (PIC) has signaled its confidence in Kengen by raising its stake in the power producer’s prospects to 6.62% per cent following the purchase of an additional 85.1 million shares. , The fund, which is set to be allotted 351.2 million KenGen shares equivalent to 5.33% equity, recently purchased the 85.1 million shares amounting to a 1.29% stake in the open market. PIC has been buying KenGen shares in batches; it first purchased 72.9 million units and followed it up with 12.2 million units early last month. “With the additional shares bought from the…

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By David Wanjala The status of Nairobi as a leading investment destination is no longer in doubt. A recent report by Infomeo, an international business and investment think tank, lists the city as one of the leading destinations for the companies that make up the Fortune 500 in the Middle East and Africa region. For this we must be happy. But as we celebrate, we shouldn’t lose sight of the problems facing the city. Corruption and Nairobi are virtually bedfellows. The high rate of unemployment vis a vis the rising cost of living means that crime has also become the…

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Financial literacy in an economy is defined as the citizens’ ability to make rational judgments and decisions with respect to the use and management of their financial assets, commonly money. It involves both the understanding of basic financial concepts and the ability and discipline to use that information to make informative personal decisions including; when to spend, when to save, budget preparation and implementation, choosing the right financial products, among others. It goes an extra mile to determine one’s ability to exercise proper judgement when offered access to credit. Financial literacy has a great bearing on the level of financial…

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BY DAVID ONJILI It is often hailed as a sport of gentlemen played by hooligans, and true, from the massive support it enjoys both at home and internationally, rugby is one of the most popular sports in this country. Interestingly it divides opinion in equal measure especially before the Kenyan public. In 1995 at Ellis Park in Johannesburg, South Africa, the home team captained by François Pienaar beat New Zealand 15-12 to lift the Webb Ellis Cup courtesy of an extra time drop goal from Joel Strankly. The Late Nelson Mandela used it as a tool to bring unity to…

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BY TERRY MWANGI It is finally March. The month we celebrate women’s contribution to social, economic, cultural and political achievements.  Rule number one about celebrating this internationally recognized day is that you do not dress for men, dress for other women! It actually makes getting dressed easier when you are dressing for style, not to impress. Your confidence shines through because you will be more comfortable with what you are wearing. Besides the normal colorful dresses, skirts, and trousers, we have compiled a list of trends that will make you look elegant and more feminine; Anything that nips at the…

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BY TOM ODHIAMBO One can argue that the cooperative movement was formed immediately Eve and Adam met and started to live together in the Garden of Eden, if you are of the Christian persuasion. But if you believe in natural evolution, then you would say that the moment two members of the same species – and this isn’t just about human beings – encountered each other, they could only have continued to live together or within the same environment, if they cooperated. Those two organisms had to avoid harming each other. They probably figured out that if they stayed near…

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