The US Supreme Court has ruled in favour of a baker in Colorado who refused to make a wedding cake for a gay couple. The Colorado state court had found that baker Jack Phillips’ decision to turn away David Mullins and Charlie Craig in 2012 was unlawful discrimination. But the Supreme Court ruled on Monday in a 7-2 vote that that decision had violated Mr Phillips’ rights. The conservative Christian cited his religious beliefs in refusing service. Gay rights groups feared a ruling against the couple could set a precedent for treating gay marriages differently from heterosexual unions. But the…
Author: NBM CORRESPONDENT
BY DAVID ONJILI As Kiarie Mwangi, a volunteer trying to reform prisoners using soccer around the country, and I drove into the compound of GK Kamiti Maximum Prison, I had mixed emotions. I trained myself not to expect anything but allow the experience be my guide. I blocked my mind from any pre-conceived bias. Suddenly, reality dawned. Kiarie instructed me to leave my cell phone, wallet and any money that was on me in the car and only carry my national identification card. Still, I was not sure of what to expect. All I knew was the realization that I…
There are shows that you watch with friends and family, chat about around the water cooler, post about on social media, and even host viewing parties for. Then, there are those you view behind closed doors, or with one hand shielding your phone when you’re on the train. You may smile in acknowledgement when your guilty pleasure series comes up in conversation, but your cool demeanor belies the fact that you’ve seen every episode. Twice. But you can’t hide your guilty pleasures from Amazon. The streaming-video service knows what you watch on your phone when no one’s looking. Amazon analyzed…
BY PETER WANYONYI In January and March of this year, this column discussed the emergence and growing acceptance of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, as well as their underlying technologies such as Blockchain. The general view of cryptocurrencies is that they are a fresh new approach to money and its issuance and management, and the lack of a centralised authority controlling the issuance of such currencies makes them particularly attractive to those who want to remain anonymous while transacting online. So far, so good. But every good thing has a not-so-good side, and cryptocurrencies are no different. The very reasons that…
BY STEPHAN DAMHORST Digitalization is the business driver for companies to safeguard their businesses. However, a great percent of the digitalization projects have or are failing after spending fortunes in activities targeting digitalization. According to a survey done by FUJITSU, one in three organizations have cancelled their digital projects, while a quarter has suffered a cost of up to €555,000 (Sh65.3 million) in digital failed projects. On another hand, some organizations are experiencing great success and are already enjoying the benefits. What seems to be the problem? 74% of businesses also admit that they do not have a digital strategy…
BY KOSTA KIOLEOGLOU According to the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) report released last month, real estate contributed the most to May’s increase in the stock of non-performing loans (NPLs).The ratio of the non-performing loans to gross loans increased to 12.4% in April from 11.4% in February 2018 largely due to increased NPLs in the real estate, trade and manufacturing sectors. Banks are designed to optimize the transfer of funds from savers to borrowers. However, with lending comes the inherent risk that loan repayments might fall behind schedule or that the borrower might not be able to repay the debt…
This year’s Budget Speech had its main focus on the “Big Four Agenda”. Accordingly, a lot of allocations went to health, housing, food security and manufacturing, with other significant portions going to the so-called enabling sectors, such as security and infrastructure. Government spending has increased five-fold in a span of 10 years, with the latest budget being bigger than those of Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda combined. For perspective, in the 2007/2008, Government spent Sh693 billion compared to this year’s Sh3.074 trillion. Properly however, what government has at its disposal is Sh2.3 trillion, as Sh800 billion will go towards servicing public…
BY ANTONY MUTUNGA Last month the government was once again at a crucial point as the 2017/2018 financial year was coming to an end. As always the government through the treasury had to present the budget as they welcomed the 2018/19 financial year that started this month. However, unlike before, this time around the budget came at a time when the government has more than one main objective to achieve. With the government working towards reducing the fiscal deficit so as to reduce the current public debt while also focusing on the sectors in its Big Four development Agenda; universal…
BY GILBERT NG’ANG’A If you look only at the topline numbers of Kenya’s economic agenda for the new financial year as per the budget read by Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich mid-June, the country looks set for a massive take-off in its growth ambitions. This clearly gives President Uhuru Kenyatta gigantic mileage from a legacy perspective and is good optics for his deputy, William Ruto who is angling to ride on Jubilee’s economic plan to succeed his boss in 2022. But that’s where the relatively positive story ends. When and if the pipeline of projects is successfully rolled out as…
BY PETER WANYONYI A common theme emerged across the region when E.A Finance Ministers presented their budgets on June 14:not a single country in the Community, like their counterparts elsewhere in Africa, can fund its own budget fully. And there’s a new kid on the block, one that does not insist on intrusive conditions that the Western lenders impose. But the story of Chinese lending to Africa and other poor regions of the world makes for concerning reading. As East Africa’s finance ministers simultaneously presented their countries’ 2018/19 budgets on June 14, a common theme emerged across the region: not…