M-KOPA Solar has been recognised as a top 100 global clean technology company in the 2014 Global Cleantech 100 awards. The Nairobi-based market leader in ‘pay-as-you-go’ energy services for off-grid homes has powered up 100,000 homes in East Africa with clean, affordable solar home systems – which are paid for using mobile money since its launch two years ago. In one month alone M-KOPA Solar households generate over 12.5 million hours of kerosene-free lighting. M-KOPA Solar households will also make combined projected savings of US$75 millionSh6.5 billion – based on Sh65,250 savings made by a single household, compared to Kerosene…
Author: Editor
Kenya Airways received two new modern aircrafts with state-of-the-art features, bringing the number of its active aircraft to 40. The airline’s first next generation B737-800 touched down at Kenya Airways’ hub at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on October 19 while its sixth B787 Dreamliner landed on October 20 during the commemoration of Mashujaa Day. Kenya Airways’ outgoing Group Managing Director and CEO Titus Naikuni said the delivery of the two airplanes was a continuation of the its ongoing fleet renewal programme. “This year has seen tremendous growth in our fleet. This is the year we began adding our flagship…
Most youths have often shied from going after the Sh200 billion worth of tenders reserved for them. Not so Steve Wambua. Whereas his peers have opted to give this opportunity a wide berth, he has taken the bull by the horns and is today earning a tidy income for himself, so much that he has been thinking of taking on the big boys in the ‘tenderpreneurs’ world. Since it became public policy for at least 30% of government business to be reserved for young people, Mr Wambua, 27, says he has appeared before numerous tendering committees and each time he…
Procter & Gamble has been voted the best company to work for in Kenya. According to a survey carried out by Deloitte & Touché, P&G emerged the top employer in Kenya, followed by Kenya Women Finance Trust and Chase Bank respectively. Other companies in the survey included, Old Mutual, Barclays bank, Coke Cola, Vivo Energy, DHL Express, Airtel, Total, Standard bank among others. Under the theme ‘Lead and Develop’, the survey evaluated input of 5,000 employees from 27 companies to ascertain which company they consider to be the best employer to work for. The survey also provided a glimpse into…
If there’s anything that last month’s Sixth East African Business Summit in Kigali failed to show, it is the feel-good family atmosphere that is needed for regional integration. It is shameful that many years after the revival of the East African Community (EAC), we are still negotiating on free movement of people and labour. Presidents of Kenya and Rwanda, Uhuru Kenyatta and Paul Kagame, reignited this rather boring debate. Uhuru chose to be diplomatic and hid in the vagueness of “some countries” that fear competition. Truth be told, Tanzania has been the biggest stumbling block on the road to integration.…
Kenya fits the bill as far as connectivity is concerned, boasting the highest bandwidth per person on the continent, the fastest speeds, and some of the lowest internet costs. In fact, internet provider Liquid Telecom CEO Ben Roberts says now that Kenya leads, internet woes will more likely come to an end. Coming from a technical background, the 43-year- old Chief Executive is currently many steps into a journey of making sure that successful growth is achieved at Liquid. An engineer by background, graduating from Bristol University, Mr Roberts moved into the telecom world, making IP networks and would join…
The political drama unfolding in Makueni County over the past few days has raised fundamentals questions about the governance and leadership structures at the county level. While it’s not the first time that the county is in the news for the wrong reasons, and neither is it the only county drifting apart under the weight of power struggles between the county executives and the legislature, it represents a leadership system stretched beyond its elastic limits. I am of the opinion that we’ve not seen the last of these dramas after Makueni and Embu. In fact, the only questions we need…
When she approached a bank for a loan two decades ago, Jennifer Riria was ridiculed and mistreated. This was the time when women were regarded as kitchen companions and sort of second-class citizens who could not take credit from banks because they did not have collateral or financial power. She recalls that day when the bank manager asked her, “Do you want women with baskets on their backs to crowd our banking hall?” It meant she would set a bad precedent. She didn’t laugh. Dr Riria cried that day all the way from the bank, she says, and has never…
Equity Bank and American Express have launched one of the first American Express Cards in Kenya. The lender now offers Kenyan consumers the Equity Bank American Express Green Card and the Equity Bank American Express Gold. The partnership gives Equity the exclusive rights to issue American Express cards in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. It also acquires merchants on to the American Express network in these countries. The bank said the two cards have been designed specifically with Kenyan consumers in mind. The Green Card offers a range of retail and lifestyle benefits and is ideal for those who will mainly…
October showed signs of the beginning of the end of the prevailing bullish market at the NSE. This saw heavy selling as investors took in gains for their investments. However, this may be viewed as normal trend, where markets slump between October and January but recover from February as companies begin to announce full-year results and dividends. Shares at NSE had mixed performance as a result of various material announcements. This included British American Investments {Britam}, Equity Bank, KenGen, Kenya Power, Kenya Orchards, Olympia Capital Holdings ltd. Among the shares that rose significantly was Kenya Power going up by over…