Author: NBM CORRESPONDENT

Local Development Research Institute (LDRI), a not-for-profit action-oriented think tank, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Global Open Data for Agriculture and Nutrition (GODAN) to work to strengthen the availability, use and sharing of open data as part of the evidence useful in efforts to improve food and nutrition security in Africa. The collaboration will include carrying out research and advocacy to influence increased access to open data in agriculture and nutrition, co-convening workshops and events designed to build capacity in African governments and strengthening open data ecosystems to support African Union countries in making evidence-informed decisions…

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Uber has announced a new pricing model after months and months of arguments between it and its drivers. The new model will see a 29% increase which will affect both UberX and UberChapChap riders in Kenya. In addition to the new charges, Uber has done away with Uber Select, which has been the company’s premium option. The category, which had been introduced in 2017 involved having high rated drives with pre-selected vehicles that are guaranteed to offer a great experience to its users. With the new model, Uber will now only offer UberX, which will take over as the premium…

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To meet the growing demand for genuine spares for Mercedes-Benz and Hyundai trucks, DT Dobie has opened a parts shop in Eldoret. There will also be a limited stock of parts for Mercedes-benz and Volkswagen passenger cars. The outlet is located on the ground floor of the Petrol City office block, a short distance from the town centre along the Eldoret/Kitale highway. “Our major parts shop in Nakuru serves the larger Rift region. We have invested in this additional outlet in response to requests from our truck customers for an easy to reach source of replacement parts while they are…

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Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA), the national apex body of the private sector, has entered into a financial agreement with Trademark East Africa (TMEA), an East African not-for profit Company Limited, to help expand trade and investment as well as create jobs and grow the economy. The financial agreement, which is worth $1.5 million (Sh155m) is aimed at supporting KEPSA’s Public-Private Sector Dialogue (PPD) programme. The programme is premised on six key areas; the transport and logistics (road, rail and air), trade facilitation, customs and tax, standards and SPS, trade logistics and technical support for efficient public-private sector dialogue frameworks.…

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Tusker Mattresses Ltd has moved to enhance its strategic human capital base with the appointment of two chief officers to drive the firm’s information technology and marketing portfolios. The C-suite appointments are part of the retailer’s ongoing commitment to deepen its professional management pool geared at guaranteeing world-class corporate governance. Tusker Mattresses group CEO Mr Dan Githua confirmed the sign-on of the immediate former Nairobi Bottlers Ltd (A subsidiary of Coca-Cola Beverages Africa) sales and marketing director Mr Daniel Kipchumba Koech, as the retailer’s chief marketing officer (CMO) in charge of marketing, business development and customer experience. He also confirmed…

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The USA and China have been involved in a major global trade war for sometime now. This war has led to a deadlock between these two super powers. During his presidential campaigns, as Antony Mutunga notes in the July edition of this magazine, US President, Donald Trump, propagated this during his election campaigns. One of his agendas was to reduce the trade deficit, which kept growing alarmingly, especially with China. According to the US Census Bureau, in 2016, the trade deficit with China had grown to almost $350 billion (Sh35.7 trillion) from $315 billion (Sh32.2 trillion) in 2012. After winning…

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Airtel Kenya will be the first teleco to roll out the new prefix number series 0100, 0101 and 0102 to customers after the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) announced the release of a new SIM prefix 01xxxx in addition to the prefix 07xxxxxxxx that is currently in use earlier this year. The telcos customers, new or existing, will have the option of selecting their preferred numbers which are available at all Airtel customer service and SIM selling outlets throughout the country. Airtel Kenya was offered three million of the new numbers while Safaricom was allocated two million lines with the…

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After about 10,000 applicants made entries to the Africa Netpreneur Prize Initiative (ANPI) when the application was opened in March, the list has now been trimmed to 20 semi-finalist entrepreneurs after thorough interviews. The semi-finalists are undergoing further interviews and evaluations in order to pick the final 10 who will battle out for the top prize in Ghana in November. “Out of the 20, ten will be picked to pitch to Jack Ma and seven celebrity judges in Accra, Ghana in November. The semi-finalists were vetted by a panel which included Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu, Fatoumata Ba, Fred Swaniker, Hasan Haider,…

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BY ANTONY MUTUNGA Faster chip, going pro and introducing slofies, apple has done this and much more in their new iPhone 11 as they look to stay ahead of their competitors. Their new flagship, introduced on September 10 at the Steve Jobs Theatre in Cupertino, California, U.S, not only brings something new for the usual apple users but it also gives android users a reason to switch to iOS. It comes in three different options, the 6.1-inch iPhone 11, the 5.8-inch iPhone 11 Pro and 6.5-inch iPhone 11 Pro Max all with a fresh palette of colours, longer battery life…

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Leading blended Scotch whisky, Chivas, has launched of the 6th year of the Chivas Venture – a global competition that gives away $1m in no-strings funding every year to the hottest social startups that blend profit and purpose to have a positive impact on the world. The competition, which brings to life Chivas’ belief that blended is better – in life, business and Scotch – invites the brightest entrepreneurs who are using business to change the world for the better to compete for a chance to win training, funding and exposure on a global scale. Thanks to the $5 million provided in funding…

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