BY DAVID WANJALA From mid 1970s all the way into late 80s, smuggling of consumer goods thrived along the border of Kenya and Uganda in what is now known as Busia County with Busia town, the District, and now County Headquarters being the centre of action. It was a matter of life and death but the returns were worth the risk. To beat the police dragnets, Busia Town being a one-street town, the locals favoured the use of bicycles to ferry the goods to Uganda by avoiding the only tarmac and therefore straight leading into Uganda. They used footpaths, popularly…
Author: NBM CORRESPONDENT
Continued oversupply in Nairobi’s prime residential market put pressure on prices and rents, resulting in declines last year, according to Knight Frank’s Kenya Market Update report for the second half of 2018. Prime residential prices fell by 4.5% in 2018, compared to a 0.9% drop in 2017, as the segment turned into a buyers’ market. Rents in the top-end of the market also dropped by 1.3% in 2018, albeit a slower decline compared to the previous year’s 2.8% slide. Sustained demand from expatriates and middle- to high-income earners, who are keen on location and quality of houses, helped reduce the…
Legal scholar and advocate, Dr Kariuki Muigua has maintained his listing on the authoritative Chambers and Partners ranking of top local lawyers. The Environmental Law and Policy Consultant who also serves as a member of the National Environment Tribunal stands out as one of the seven local lawyers ranked in the Chambers and Partners Band 1 category which lists the crème de la crème of local lawyers. His alternative dispute resolution (ADR) accomplishments appear to have catapulted him to the apex band. While acknowledging the ranking feat, Dr Muigua noted that his continued focus on ADR had positively served to…
Mombasa residents will now enjoy the same services as their counterparts in Nairobi after the county government recently launched an e-parking system, looking to increase its revenue and seal revenue collection loopholes. The new e-parking system, which uses mobile USSD technology, will require motorists to pay their parking fees using their mobile phones. In order to pay for the fees, one will have to dial the USSD code *282# and follow instructions. The move is seeking to eliminate all the revenue leakages in the transport department of the county. According to Mariam Mbaruk, Mombasa County Finance executive, the e-parking system…
Preparing land for cultivation with a subsoiler preserves moisture in the soil for the production of crops by minimum tillage in dry areas. Faced with the challenges of climate change, erratic rainfall and the need to boost crop yields, farmers in Kenya are turning to minimum tillage to safeguard harvest and is far more reachable than turning to the need for large investments in irrigation. This involves changing from traditional implements to using a chisel plough, or subsoiler and a crumbler roller to prepare land for planting. Comparing minimum tillage with current widespread farming method, Fergus Robley, the managing director…
Ethiopian Airlines Group, Africa’s Largest Airline Group and SKYTRAX Certified Four Star Global Airline, congratulated the entire Ethiopian family and the country at large, on the recognition of Mr. Tewolde GebreMariam, Group CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, as one of the most influential people of African descent in the category of business and entrepreneurship at a ceremony held in Addis Ababa last month. The most Influential People of African Descent (MIPAD) is a global civil society initiative in support of the United Nation’s International Decade for People of African Descent, recognising high achievers in four categories; Politics and Governance, Business and…
DHL Global Forwarding, the international provider of air, sea and road freight services, has once again been voted Africa’s International Freight Forwarder of the Year for 2019 by readers of STAT Times, an international air freight publication for business decision-makers in the shipping, transport, aviation and tourism sectors. This is the fifth consecutive time DHL Global Forwarding has won in this biennial award for excellence in air cargo, presented during the Gala Award Nite on February 20, 2019, as part of the Air Cargo Africa 2019 conference held in Johannesburg. The latest DHL Global Connectedness Index, which measures the flows…
Kenya’s latest Nielsen Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) score for Quarter 4, 2018 has rebounded by a healthy eight points since the previous quarter to 102. The survey conducted in the fourth quarter of last year reveals an underlying sense of optimism among the Kenyan consumers. “Consumer confidence returned to positive levels in Q4 in Kenya as a result of an overall uplift in the scores on job prospects, personal finances, and readiness to spend. The marginal decline in inflation and the decrease in food prices for some staple products, coupled with a resilient private sector could have boosted consumer sentiments…
Dr. Joseph Aluoch’s 1991 Mercedes Benz 300 SE is the first entry received for this year’s CBA Africa Concours d’Elegance which is rated as the classiest event on the Kenya motor sport calendar. This year’s edition is the 49th in the annual series organised by the Alfa Romeo Owners Club and is scheduled for September 29th at the Ngong Racecourse. Dr. Alouch, a regular competitor and also a perpetual early bird, often parades this massive Mercedes dressed in various costumes. His best attempt was appearing as the “Last king of Scotland” in 2017 which deservedly won an award for fancy…
Commonwealth Development Corporation (CDC), the UK government-owned development finance institution has opened offices in Nairobi and Lagos. This is in line with UK’s agenda of increasing trade ties with African countries. According to Nick O’Donohoe, chief executive of the CDC Group, the new offices in the capital cities of Kenya and Nigeria will allow the firm to seal investments and expand their support to enterprises across the continent. “I think we wouldn’t have committed to that number unless we thought it was doable in a way that allowed us to earn a return and have significant development impact. It does…