By ADIL YOUSSEFI A lack of accurate and timely data on electricity use has caused consumers’ uproar on the over-charged bills and has prevented them from monitoring, managing and/or reducing their power consumption. Today, utilities are thus moving to smart meters and grids as part of long-range plans to ensure a reliable energy supply, incorporate distributed generation resources, develop innovative storage solutions, reduce the need to build new power plants and enable customers to have more control over their power use. There are reported instances of consumers’ outrage and long queues at Kenya Power’s office as consumers sort clarification on their…
Author: NBM CORRESPONDENT
BY JOANNE VAN DER WALT Often, CSR programmes are implemented through ad hoc, unrelated activities, whose positive effects are short-lived. Once-off, annual events are seen as an extension of marketing activities to show that the business has ticked the ‘good corporate citizen’ box but this approach does not have a lasting impact. CSR needs to be reframed as a contributor to profitability – and that means treating it like any other business strategy: with a plan that outlines what success looks like, measures progress and pivots to meet changing stakeholder needs. The result is more effective CSR initiatives that have…
The Coca-Cola Company has announced that it is fundamentally reshaping its approach to packaging, with a global goal to help collect and recycle the equivalent of 100% of its packaging by 2030. This goal is the centerpiece of the Company’s new packaging vision for a World Without Waste, which the Coca-Cola system intends to back with a multi-year investment that includes ongoing work to make packaging 100% recyclable. This begins with the understanding that food and beverage containers are an important part of people’s modern lives but that there is much more to be done to reduce packaging waste globally.…
Informal transactions through Facebook groups are threatening the success of e-commerce giants in Africa according to a recent straw poll on the impact of the Black Friday sale promotion on this fledgling industry. According to our Black Friday Straw Poll, which ran in December 2017 among 2,031 respondents in Nigeria, South Africa, and Kenya, Jumia still remains the most preferred e-commerce vendor. 56% of our poll respondents have shopped on Jumia before. Interestingly, a significant number of online shoppers utilize Facebook groups. At 32%, Facebook is the second leading online retailer in the leading e-commerce regions. Through informal entrepreneurs who…
When the renowned global institution, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), appointed Nancy Asiko Onyango to take up the role of director of the fund’s office of Internal Audit and Inspection, it was no-longer business as usual. Taking over from Clare Brady who left the fund last year, she will be in charge of the office, which conducts independent examinations of the body’s internal control and governance processes. According to the managing director of the IMF, Christine Lagarde, Ms Onyango brings to the fund more than 25 years of experience in the field of internal audit, strategic risk management, corporate governance,…
Local personal care products manufacturer PZ Cussons is diving deeper into Kenya’s emerging male grooming market with multi- sensory products that are designed to elevate its flagship Imperial Leather brand to pole position in the personal care category, estimated to be worth at least Sh5 billion in annual revenues. Following a realization that male consumers have increasingly become choosy and having understood the factors that inform their purchase decisions for personal care brands, PZ Cussons managing director Sekar Ramamoorthy said that the firm had established the importance of aesthetic design and the dominant role of fragrance in the new men’s…
BY DAVID ONJILI It was a once revered on the Continent, branding itself as The Pride of Africa, still does to date, yet, Kenya Airways (KQ) remains an embarrassing symbol of Kenyan incompetence and lack of innovation. Delays in passenger departures is common, with a number of them being neglected by a staff bereft of empathy and professionalism. The crew and engineers keep lamenting of poor pay and working conditions with pilots flying longer hours than the required International Air Transport Association (IATA) standard regulations. Ethiopian Airways on the other hand is meteorically rising on the Continent and in the…
Ringier Africa Digital Publishing (RADP) has further expanded its news and media portfolio by entering into a digital content license agreement with The New York Times News Service and Syndicate, the licensing and syndicate division of The New York Times. RADP will publish New York Times journalism under its new media brand Pulse in Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria. Pulse informs and entertains Africa’s mass and mobile population with a reach of 100 million people every month. The launch of New York Times journalism on Pulse will bring award-winning reporting and storytelling to Africa’s informed readership. The New York Times is…
BY VICTOR ADAR The age of doing only what is in line with your professional training is over. There is a typical feeling nowadays especially from those who have the flexibility that doing something different can go a long way. But while some rise as others fall, many are still not scared of jumping into the ring to vie for a piece of the pie. Grace Mikinya is one trained cabin attendant who took a dive to a completely different field. The youthful lady has found success in selling meat products. Talking about Lamag Meat Supplier, a company she co-owns…
Retailer Nakumatt Holdings welcomed a High Court ruling, granting administration orders in respect to the firm and issued last month. The order granted by High Court Judge Fredrick Ochieng follows a petition by four Nakumatt suppliers seeking administration rights as part of a business recovery plan for the retailer. The legal development now provides a much needed relief for suppliers among other partners to resume supplies with customers also set to enjoy a revamped Nakumatt. Speaking when he confirmed the retailer’s position on the matter, Nakumatt Holdings managing director, Atul Shah said the firm would comply with the High Court…