Car and General has launched a new carriage style Piaggio three wheeler (tuk tuk) called the Romanza, which comes with a two-year warranty. It is a four-stroke 200cc petrol engine with an average fuel consumption of 30km per litre. “There is a growing need for urban transport which is driven by the rapid expansion of cities and towns in the 47 counties. Three wheelers are gaining popularity as they are perceived to be safer than motorcycles,” said Joshua Maithya, a Car and General sales executive for Piaggio. “The Piaggio Romanza features a drop top hood and coordinated half doors and…
Author: NBM CORRESPONDENT
Quantum power East Africa GT Menengai Ltd has received funds worth Sh5 billion ($49.5million) from the Climate Investment Funds (CIF) and the Clean Technology Fund (CTF) after the African Development Bank (AfDB) approved a senior loan of Sh3 billion ($29.5 million) and a concessional loan of Sh2 billion ($20 million). The funds are to be used on the development of a geothermal plant that is located at the Menengai geothermal field in Nakuru County. The funds will be going to a 35W geothermal power plant, which is part of a set of three other plants, which have a combined capacity…
In our last Issue’s Cover Story, we narrowed on the impact of thriving contraband trade on our manufacturing sector. The lid has since been blown off the can of the counterfeit business, revealing the other side of it that our story did not delve in – safety and health. The ensuing debate on the possibility that the sugar in our living rooms is not fit for human consumption is as chilling as it is shocking. It goes to reveal the extent to which the country is exposed in the trending trade. Isn’t it absurd that in the case of sugar,…
BY GILBERT NG’ANG’A When Kenya announced late May that it would not sign a free trade agreement that China has been negotiating with the East African Community (EAC) partner States, it marked the beginning of a new era for Nairobi’s economic architecture. After two years of intense lobbying by Beijing to have the East African states—Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania—agree to the trade deal, Nairobi, unexpectedly, pulled the trigger. With that, Kenya’s trade relations with China will never be the same. Disregarding the expected diplomatic brouhaha that such an action would bring between two nations, Kenya said the decision…
BY DOMINIC WABALA In May 2018 Kenya rejected a free trade area agreement between East African Community (EAC) and China in a bid to protect its manufacturing industries. There has been concern that cheap Chinese imports are flooding the Kenyan market at the expense of local manufacturing industries that are also struggling with high power tariffs and idle workforce. During his State of the nation speech in early May, President Uhuru Kenyatta revealed that the Anti Counterfeit Agency in 2017 seized goods worth over Sh1.7 billion and destroyed others worth over Sh700 million. Kenya, he said, has been loosing over…
BY ANTONY MUTUNGA Over the years, Kenya has emerged as one of the fastest growing economies in Africa. One of the major sectors that have been contributing to this growth has been the manufacturing sector which has seen the country become one of the most industrialized countries in the East African region. The manufacturing sector has helped Kenya not only become a hub for business but it has also brought multinational companies such as Volkswagen to the shores of the country thus showing other organizations that the sector is a safe and worthy investment. However, in 2015, the contribution of…
BY PETER WANYONYI Why is the African so helpless, so hapless, useless, pointlessly indolent in the face of grievous conditions that require decisive action? The past six or so years have treated Kenyans to a despicable opera of corruption and bad governance, one that would have led to revolutions among any other people. It turns out that the Kenyan government is in fact one massive graft party: government officials are looting everything everywhere. The sleaze is so extensive that the National Youth Service has been turned into a free-for-all gravy train. And what’s the reaction of the wider Kenyan citizenry…
BY DAVID ONJILI Burial insurance is a cash policy; this means that over time, it builds cash value. The premiums paid are constant over time and varying with the policy provider; it covers expenses like mortuary fees, hearse hire, flowers for wreath and any other miscellaneous costs. There must be a difference between a financially literate person and the pack. Financial literacy and planning involve seeking information and knowledge to cushion you of events whose occurrence is eventual but we may not be ready when it does. Yet, both culture and religion (traditional African religion, Islam and Christianity) play a…
BY DR JAIMINI GOHIL Last month, as we observed World Immunisation Week themed ‘Vaccines work, Do your part’, we highlighted the collective action needed to ensure that every person is protected from vaccine-preventable diseases yet many of us may not be familiar with the importance of being immunised against infectious diseases that can be fatal. Immunisation is providing protection against an infectious disease by introducing to the body a preventive antigen or immunogen, in the form of a vaccine which is either the killed or altered form of the bacteria or virus. This vaccine is responsible for ensuring the body…
The change in perspective ten years ago that led philanthropists to focus their money and energy on tackling neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) in partnership with the Ministry of Health in Rwanda needs to happen at ground-level in communities and public health systems across the continent to sustain the gains already achieved. A deeper focus on driving behavioural changes amongst communities and families, where NTDs such as intestinal worms and schistosomiasis have been pervasive and the source of much suffering, is essential to complement the expansion of access to medication at the fulcrum of the END Fund’s partnership in Rwanda. It…