Author: Nairobi Business Monthly Reporter

Manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, Caterpillar (CAT) has unveiled a new state of art excavators christened “NEXGEN EXCAVATORS” in an aim to expand its portfolio in the building and construction industry in East Africa region. Machines sales manager for Mantrac, John Waikwa said their target market is construction companies engaged in roads, building and mining. Government, he added, is also a consumer of this type of excavator for cleaning ditches, water pans and opening up new water pans in the arid regions of Kenya. “All these sectors are looking for affordable equipment at acquisition and a strong after sales…

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Travel & Tourism in Africa is booming, growing 5.6% in 2018 compared to the global average of 3.9% and the broader African economy rate of 3.2%. This places Africa as the second-fastest growing tourism region behind only Asia-Pacific. Such growth is partly explained by North Africa’s rebound from security crises as well as the development and implementation of policies that promote travel facilitation. For over 25 years, the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), which represents the global private sector of Travel & Tourism, has produced the authoritative research on the economic contribution of the sector. In 2018, the research…

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Kenya Airways, the country’s national carrier and Alitalia, the flag carrier of Italy, which are both partners in the SkyTeam Airline Alliance have signed a codeshare agreement to boost business travel and tourism between the two regions. The agreement will offer enhanced connections to Europe through Rome, to 16 domestic Italian destinations and 11 international destinations. The move will give tourists and businessmen more travel options through the two airlines’ hubs in Rome and Nairobi. Kenya Airways is set to inaugurate its four-weekly service between Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi and Leonardo da Vinci International Airport in Fiumicino, Rome…

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KCB Bank Kenya Limited has entered into an agreement with Attijariwafa Bank Group, Morocco’s royal family-owned lender in a move to drive cross-border trade and deepen financial inclusion. The memorandum of understanding (MoU) which was signed on the sidelines of the 6th International Forum Africa Development (FIAD 2019) held last month in Casablanca will see both banks share best practices in the banking sector in East and North Africa. According to Mohamed El Kettani, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Attijariwafa, the MoU is important for the Attijariwafa Bank group. “It will help us to offer our economic operators…

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RUBIKA & ADMI have signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the creation of a Createch animation and game school in Nairobi, to be financed by Agence Française de Développement (AFD). RUBIKA, ADMI and AFD share a vision to strengthen the animation and game industry in Africa by setting up a world-class facility in Nairobi, Kenya. They are collaborating to set up a Bachelors program in Game Design & Development and a short term certificate in 2D Animation to start later in the year. Based on the core philosophy shared by ADMI and RUBIKA, the project will take an ecosystem approach, supporting promising…

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The case has always been that Kenya is an agricultural country. Agriculture, we have been told time and again, is the backbone of the economy. Indeed, a vast majority of the country’s land is fertile and produces enough food to sustain the population of over 40m. It is, therefore, an unanticipated reality to hear of people dying in Turkana because of hunger and many others starving in other parts of the country. What is disheartening even more and more is the fact that it happens every other year. There will be drought every year, people will die and the government…

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BY MULEI MUTAVA MICHAEL Investors familiar with Wall Street lingo know the popular phrase, “Bulls make money, bears make money, pigs get slaughtered.”  In effect, this phrase cautions against excessive greed and impatience in the market. Bulls make a kill when the market is on the rise while bears take their harvest when it’s on a decline. The success in both strategies is predicated on impeccable timing for jumping on and off the ship as it sets sail, the direction notwithstanding. A pig comes late to the party, stays long or misses it altogether whichever the case may be, and…

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BY DAVID ONJILI Joe Kadenge comes from a golden generation of Kenyan players whose football brilliance was never rewarded by big money deals. Peter Dawo, Henry Motego, Maurice Ochieng, Abbas Magongo and Julius Owino, though not in his league and timeline, exemplify Kenya’s thankless football of previous year. Despite bringing both their clubs and the national soccer team glory they have nothing to show for as they live on the breadline. Those, like the legendary national team and AFC Leopards’ striker, Dr J.J. Masiga who have not tasted the pangs of squalor escaped poverty by the reward of their efforts…

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BY FUAD ABDIRAHMAN Every evening in most parts of the country, the young, the not so young and the old flock the so call veve bases to indulge in a poison of their choice, Miraa (Khat), which they chew almost all night as they share stories and hallucinate. Miraa is a leave stimulant. It contains a chemical element known as cathinone, which is psychoactive and causes lack of sleep, brain confusion, mental breakdown and psychosis. Miraa has long-term effects that are physical, social, emotional and mental. It leads to bad breath, discolored teeth and in some extreme cases; miraa chewers…

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A rapidly evolving new subspecies of the cryptosporidium parasite – a leading cause of diarrhoeal disease in children worldwide – has been revealed by scientists at the University of East Anglia. The study, published in Nature Microbiology, sheds new light on how this parasite has evolved the ability to spread more easily between people.  Researchers sequenced and compared whole genomes from over 20 different cryptosporidium cases to find out more about the parasite and how it infects people. Their work will help public health interventions aimed at preventing the spread of the disease. The Cryptosporidium parasite is one of several microorganisms that cause diarrhoeal disease. It is…

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