South Africa’s opposition party appears to be falling apart following a period of gradual growth. Does this mean even greater ANC dominance? And what might a new opposition look like? BY JASON ROBINSON The first black leader of South Africa’s main opposition Democratic Alliance (DA), Mmusi Maimane, resigned late last month. This follows the party’s disappointing May 2019 General Election showing, in which the DA suffered its first national loss of support since its inception. Since then, a series of poor by-election showings, several personal scandals and internal ideological ruptures have heaped additional pressure on Maimane. Eyes on the prize…
Author: NBM CORRESPONDENT
BY VICTOR ADAR With ever growing competition among organizations to hire and retain top talent and worrying skills mismatch in the workplace, institutions have not put in place requisite learning and development systems to bridge skills gap, cultivate relationships, ensure employee satisfaction and grow bottom lines, experts have said. A document by City & Guilds Group business Kineo, a global skills organization, indicates that while employees around the world have a strong appetite for learning, they are inhibited by a lack of accessible, appropriate and engaging training opportunities. The study that surveyed 6,500 employees and 1,300 employers across 13 markets…
Savannah Cement head, Ronald Ndegwa was named the Overall CEO of the Year at Kenya Institute of Management (KIM) Company of the Year Awards (COYA) gala ceremony held at a Nairobi hotel. Now on its 20th year, the KIM Company of the Year Awards (COYA) which also incorporates the SME of the Year Awards (SMOYA) seek to promote and encourage best practices in Corporate Performance, Leadership, People Management, Customer Focus, Financial Management, Innovation, Corporate Citizenship and Productivity in Kenya. The Awards are based on a global Business Excellence Model – Organizational Performance Index (OPI). The OPI process assesses organisations on…
Developing nations are moving toward cleaner power but not nearly fast enough to limit global CO2 emissions or the consequences of climate change New investment in wind, solar, and other clean energy projects in developing nations dropped sharply in 2018, largely due to a slowdown in China. While the number of new clean power-generating plants completed stayed flat year-to-year, the volume of power derived from coal surged to a new high, according to Climatescope, an annual survey of 104 emerging markets conducted by research firm BloombergNEF (BNEF). The findings suggest that developing nations are moving toward cleaner power but not…
James Kizza, assistant Commissioner IT, Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), is the winner of the East Africa CIO of the Year Award 2019 for his crucial role in the trail-blazing digital development of the URA. Upon receiving the award from Joe Mucheru, Kenya’s ICT Cabinet Secretary, Kizza said that it was an expected win though it took a long walk considering the 26 years that he has spent in public service. This came after URA introduced digital tax stamps, electronic invoicing – electronic fiscal devices, non-intrusive inspection together with smart gates to better manage its services at the borders and improve client experience…
Martin Oduor – Otieno, the new chairman of Kenya Breweries Limited and UDV (Kenya) Limited which are both subsidiaries of EABL Group, has taken over the mantle of the top brewer from Charles Muchene who completed his maximum tenure of nine years allowed for independent directors as per the Corporate Governance Code issued by the Capital Markets Authority. The former KCB Group CEO and an ex-Treasury principal secretary is among the finest; an accomplished business leader, having worked more recently with Deloitte East Africa as Partner among other senior private sector appointments. Currently, he is an independent leadership and governance…
Brian Kassim Owango, the owner of Aqueous Kenya, in a bid to treat guests to a variety of culinary activities from in-depth tastings to preparation techniques, recently held a two-day beverage culture event that brought different stakeholders in the liquor and bar business together to discuss emerging trends, commonalities and recommendations that can build the industry for a better Kenyan hospitality scene. The pioneer mixologist said that the objective of the event is for consumers to understand and enjoy what the industry has to offer as well as giving a chance to industry players to meet and discuss shared issues…
Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) has partnered up with Simba Corporation to fund small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to acquire new trucks. Under the bank’s motor vehicle financing scheme dubbed Beba Leo, SMEs will have access to FUSO trucks with 100% financing. The deal comes with a flexible repayment period that will allow those interested to gradually repay without disrupting their cash flow or working capital. According to Kennedy Nyakomitta, General Manager Asset Finance at DTB, the scheme is developed in a way that will allow the customer to cater to their most pressing needs without any capital outlay. “With Beba…
Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) Commissioner, Dr Fred Mugambi has urged policymakers to embrace research and utilize the findings for public decision making to enable Africa realize its fiscal policy goals. Dr Mugambi, who heads the KRA training school, Kenya School of Revenue Administration (KESRA), said that using well done research and findings to transform policies might act as the baseline for making public decisions. “Researches are used to explain situations like trends in economic growth and GDP (Growth Domestic Products) ratios, prove theories and find solutions to problems like illicit financial flows,” said Mugambi. Arguing that findings should not end…
Scope Markets, a global online trading platform, has launched its trading operations in the country. The company looks to provide an online platform where investors can trade global shares, indices, forex, and commodities. Under the entity, SCFM Ltd, the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) has licensed the non-dealing online foreign exchange broker. Already the company boasts to have opened over 1,000 accounts showing the country’s thirst to invest in online trading. According to Jacob Plattner, the CEO of Scope Markets, the strategy of the company has always been to take its institutional heritage to the retail markets. “In order to do…
