By Gabriel Cajetan It is 5.00am in the evening and a wisp of dark clouds are fast approaching, an indication that it’s about to rain. Priscilla Kiptoo hurriedly milks her Freshian cow. As she puts aside a milking can that is almost full, a man riding a bicycle, with two huge cans of milk on the carrier stops by to inquire whether he could buy some milk from her. They speak in low tones then suddenly Kiptoo waves him away. “I cannot sell my milk at a- throw –away-price.” Says the mother of four who resides in Kipkaren, Nandi County.…
Author: Editor
By Ryan Okoth The recent interdictions of six officers over the multimillion apron bus scam at Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) is only a tip of the iceberg, if the depth of the scandal is anything to go by. An audit report requested by the Board weeks before President Uhuru Kenyatta whistle blew over the rot blames several management staff at Kenya’s biggest aviation facility. Right from the Board, which has found scapegoat in the six suspended officers, to the administration officials and the finance department, the rot runs deep and more heads are yet to roll. What was meant to…
BY LUKE MULUNDA Safaricom recently announced a Sh31.9 billion after-tax profit, breaking its own record in regional corporate earnings. The company’s board of directors extended the term of its CEO, Mr Bob Collymore, by two years, in what is seen as a move to maintain the growth momentum. But how significant is two years for such a high-profile company? Mr Collymore says his focus now is to institutionalise what he calls a value-based leadership team to steer the company over the next 20 or so years. “Our customers have trusted us for the past 15 years because we have remained…
By Dr Kellen Kiambati While banks continue to withdraw liquidity from the capital markets by making fewer loans, pension funds and their asset managers are well suited to fill that funding gap. Because mandate of pension fund is to fund the retirements of workers who may not be leaving the workforce for decades, they are able and willing to make very long-term investments. A long time horizon fits both the large scale and global nature of our operations and fiduciary responsibility. More important, maintaining a long-term perspective benefits pensioners. It is, however, not only a matter of ability and…
By Stanley Rumba With the heavy funding of water infrastructure to mitigate increased urbanization and support industry at the Coast, the national and county governments seem to be headed for a collision as the former seeks to get prompt payment for water consumption to repay accumulated loans. On May 15 this year, Coast Water Services Board (CWSB) held a crucial board meeting under its new chairman Mr Granton Samboja in which it resolved to recover a total of Sh1.2 billion debt from bulk water distribution to water and sanitation companies across the Coast region so as to sustain its operation…
BY LYDIAH WERE Insurers are braced for more mergers and acquisitions as competition in the industry squeezes revenues. With nearly 50 players chasing after a gradually expanding cake, the ability of established insurers to raise or even maintain pricing levels is increasingly being undermined. In fact, investment experts and analysts say an influx of new capital flows from sources such as private equity funds and foreign insurers is expected to enhance the overall capacity of the industry, thus increasing cut-throat competition that will touch off the long-awaited consolidation in the industry. “This will in-turn kick-start mergers and acquisitions in…
By Kosta Kioleoglou Kenya remains the largest economy in East Africa with significant potential to further capitalize on regional markets and strengthen its position as the region’s economic powerhouse. With the recent discovery of oil, gas and coal representing a great opportunity for its overall development, Kenya is now viewed as the economic engine of East Africa. From a growing youthful population, dynamic private sector, a new Constitution and its pivotal role in East Africa, Kenya has a great potential to be one of Africa’s success stories. However, over half of Kenya’s population is under the age of 18.…
BY LYDIAH WERE When Titus Mumo started his taxi business in mid 2010, he was looking for a soft landing after leaving his job at the airport, where he had watched many young men eke out a living from cabs. Gradually, it became a fulltime job – running one car bought from his employment savings – and so the budding entrepreneur started thinking of growing it into a serious business that would employ more people and generate a good income. “I started with my own car,” says Mumo, the Managing Director of Africabs Tours Ltd, “but later I leased cars…
Samsung Electronics seeks to change the game by opening the largest ultra-modern experience store in East Africa, sitting on a 5000 square meter area in the heart of the CBD, on Monrovia Street, Nairobi. According to Robert Ngeru, Samsung’s Vice President and COO, East Africa, the additional Experience Store is part of the company’s investment to expand its retail network and give customers an opportunity to experience the products and services. “This state-of-the-art store will give customers the opportunity to not only inquire about our devices but also experience them real-time, and with trained experience customer care representatives, the consumer…
Safaricom Limited is Kenya’s, indeed, East Africa’s leading provider of converged communication solutions. Formed in 1997 as a fully owned subsidiary of Telkom Kenya, the telecom giant entered the market with hardly three products to offer; voice and text. In May 2000, Vodafone Group Plc of the United Kingdom acquired a 40% stake and management responsibility for the company.The growth of Safaricom into the giant it is today, the axe of being declared a dominant player by the sector regulator hovering around its neck for operating way above its competitors is fascinating. From the five common product segments of yesteryears…