By Luke Mulunda Corruption, which is simply reaping – or better ripping off – where you haven’t sown, has become a way of life. Like it or not, corruption actually drives Kenya’s economy. Without greasing people’s palms, life would be extremely hard. Most PSVs would stall, files at Lands ministry would move at a slower than snail’s speed, our cells and jails would get full and government activities would literally come to a standstill. The current report by the auditor-general is the latest evidence of how, thanks to corruption, billions can be pumped into the economy to produce more goods,…
Author: Editor
Gabriel Cajetan On a normal morning, Sally Chepleting wakes up at 5:00am and heads straight to her wooden cowshed on a farm in Lessos, Nandi County. Armed with two milking cans, she effortlessly milks her cows as she enjoys the tune of a popular Kalenjin song from her little radio placed a few yards from the milking shed. She later delivers her milk to the dairy plant upon which she is issued with a receipt detailing the number of litres delivered. With this, she gets an assurance to receive her pay at the end of the month. This has become…
Peter Wanyonyi On August 10 2015, First Lady Margaret Kenyatta quietly launched a service, dubbed Sema-Doc, that promises to disrupt and completely revolutionize the medical care sector in Kenya. In a first for the region, the service seeks to utilize mobile phone and Internet communications to expand the reach of health services in the country. And, frankly, it’s difficult to think of a country better suited to this initiative than Kenya. Being Kenya, however, the initiative has come in for lots of criticism and skepticism, especially from the medical fraternity. Doctors are wondering how patients will be able to get…
Rita Ohaedoghasi Planning a trip while pregnant? Whether it is an essential family visit, a critical business trip or just mind-clearing ‘baby moon’, the idea of traveling when you are pregnant can be frightening. How do you manage a plane or a strange hotel room when it is hard to get comfortable in your own bed? The fact is, this period is one of the best times for you to get away and yourself as it is usually safe for women with low-risk pregnancies to travel as long as they prioritize their comfort and health while on the go. Before…
Tom Odhiambo Who killed the middle classes? This is the subtitle of David Boyle’s book, Broke (Fourth Estate, 2013). The basic assumption of this book is that there was once a thriving group of people called the ‘middle class.’ But who were they in the middle of? Apparently they sat between the upper and lower – working or poor – classes. That these people had a stable life, a consequence of a good education – they had university training and degrees, a good job – a doctor, a lawyer, an engineer, an accountant, a university lecturer etc, a good family…
By OMONDI AKURE The twenty-first century has come with sweeping changes. Chief among these changes is on the demographics. Somehow, today’s typical young man or woman is more independent than his 20th century counterpart. He would like “to do his thing,” where his counterpart in the 20th century was ready to receive orders. On dressing, your guess is as good as mine. Just as they would not like to be told what to do, today’s young people would not like to be lectured on what to dress. They are not just out there in discothèques and cinema halls; they are…
PETER WANYONYI The 90s was the decade of the Internet, the birth of personalised technology. As the Internet emerged from being a nerdy preoccupation patronized mainly by geeks and scientists, applications of the new technology slowly but surely grew and then exploded. The West and South East Asia galloped forward, carried by the astonishing abilities of new technologies to facilitate split-second transactions and open up new frontiers and means of delivery in fields as diverse as warfare and education. Even staid old fields like agriculture were not left behind: the use of devices and systems permeated everything from milking cows…
Kosta Kioleoglou In order to achieve better living standards for her citizens, every emerging country has to go through several phases. Unfortunately, the focus is mainly on quantity and not quality. People care only about today and not for the future. For sustainable growth and better standards of living, it is a basic requirement to include quality and planning. Over the last few years, Kenya has been on a fast forward movement. Its economy, at first sight, seems to be booming. The average standards of living are getting better in theory, and people are investing their future in promising sectors…
Dr Kellen Kiambati It might have seemed like a good idea. After all the team had gotten off to poor start by losing its first three games, the coach asked that a huge stump be installed in the players locker room. Under the slogan, “Keep on Chopping” the coach invited players to take turns whacking at the stump. During a team meeting for everyone except special teamers, the punter decided to try his hand at the stump by himself. Unfortunately, his foot got in the way. The coach admitted the ploy was a good one; the team had won one…
Nairobi County Government is demanding Sh143 million from NSSF, owners of Hazina Towers for the 85 parking spaces that have been obstructed by on-going construction on the structure. In a terse letter demanding the money, City Hall also raised the controversial issue of whether the building plans conform to the Nairobi integrated master plan. NSSF hired China Jiangxi to construct the 39-storey building incorporating the four floors that house Nakumatt Lifestyle. County Executive Committee member for Finance Mr Gregory Mwakiringo’s letter also demanded an environmental impact assessment report and an annual assessment by the National Environmental Management Authority. Failure to…