International Finance Corporation (IFC), which is a member of the World Bank Group has announced a Sh5.4billion loan to Equity Bank Kenya to assist small and medium enterprises that are facing Covid-19 challenges. The new loan will allow Equity Bank to maintain lending to the risky small traders and firms, who have been hard hit by the economic effects of the pandemic. It will ultimately support hundreds of Kenyan businesses in the manufacturing, health, trade, transport, and consumer goods sectors. The credit is in line with IFC’s global $8b fast-track Covid-19 facility, which is designed to help businesses maintain operations…
Author: NBM CORRESPONDENT
A global report on corporate taxation has identified Kenya as one of the leading countries currently fostering tax reforms for economic growth. The report by the OECD dubbed Corporate Tax Statistics (second edition) singles out Kenya as one of the global jurisdictions with a generous accelerated depreciation corporate tax policy alongside Italy, Papua New Guinea and Cote D’Ivoire. The 2019 report provides fresh insights into the global tax and economic activities of nearly 4,000 multinational enterprises (MNE) groups headquartered in 26 jurisdictions and operating across more than 100 jurisdictions worldwide. Of the 74 jurisdictions covered in the 2019 analysis, 57 provide…
As part of the ongoing emphasis on online learning and the heightened levels of security threats during the pandemic, SANS Institute, a global leader in cyber security training and certifications, announced the availability of CyberStart Game for students and young adults across the Middle East and Africa. CyberStart Game provides a gamified learning experience that can be used in the classroom or accessed at home. This 100% online learning platform is designed to teach complex security concepts promoting self- exploration and investigation over traditional learning methods. Students can play over 200 challenges and are in control of their learning as…
As organizations across Emerging Africa recognize that application, information technology (IT), security and workforce transformation are key to long-term business success, Dell Technologies is betting enterprise and consumer solutions that accelerate the digital delivery of modern IT services that can differentiate a business, its products and operations. This includes new technologies and products across commercial PCs, storage and cloud such as PowerStore, which is a newly launched mid-range storage solution built from the ground up in order to address the challenges of the data era, and PowerScale, which is designed for organizations that want to manage their data, not their…
According to the East Africa Regional Economic Outlook 2020 by the African Development Bank (AfDB), East Africa continues to be fastest growing region on the continent despite the disruption by the Covid-19 pandemic. Prior to the pandemic, the region’s economic growth was projected to be over 5%, which is higher than Africa’s average, which stands at 3.3% and the global average which is 2.9%. However, with COVID-19 having caused havoc as well as the locust invasion experienced in the region, job layoffs and business closures have been experienced throughout the region. As a result of these economic disruptions the outlook…
BY MARK HAVERCROFT For the past two decades, the economy of a number of countries on the African continent has been growing significantly faster than the global average, with sub-Saharan countries particularly leading the way, according to a recent report published by the African Development Bank. The continent’s middle class has also shown the largest growth, to some 350 million strong, driving a rise in the private consumption of goods by an average 3.7% year-on-year since 2010, with consumer spending accounting for between 50% and 60% of the growth of Africa’s economy. Targeting and servicing this significant middle-class market will be key…
BY DAVID ONJILI It is not rare to see some of the most tribal, racist and bigoted individuals claim allegiance to sports teams. These very people, who spew hatred towards others on the basis of our collective differences, come to cheer during games like all is ok. This is not what sports is about. Sports is about competition but behind that are underlying values of unity, love and above all respect. The recent murder of George Floyd in the United States of America by a police officer and subsequent nationwide protests has rekindled an already existing debate, one that we…
BY JACOB OKETCH This book by Munira Hussein is both engaging and captivating. The stories are told in the I narrator perspective and this foregrounds their authenticity to the reader. For the first time, I have read stories set in the northern part of Kenya and thereby had a glimpse of the lores and mores of the people from this region. Although it is the last story that is titled “unfit for society”, all the stories depict a situation which aptly captures that title in the sense that the author has sharply focused on what is wrong with most of…
BY VICTOR ADAR Located at Seasons Centre in Embakasi Village, Nyayo Estate road and just a short distance from Coca-Cola depot, Seasons Airport Hotel offers African cuisine with a variety of foods in the menu from ala carte where customers can order individual dishes (from a menu), to English, or traditional breakfast. When there were no restrictions and current health safety concerns, the hotel’s spaces used to accommodate 80 people. Today, the facility can only take in half the number thanks to the ‘new normal’. With Sh2, 000, you can enjoy yourself big time. The amount can afford chicken, chips…
When you are wading through the waters of sobriety, you see certain missteps that you used to make and you wonder whether you were still operating within the margins of sanity BY JACOB OKETCH The most important therapy to an alcoholic is the story they are told of the experiences of an alcoholic by an alcoholic. I am curious about the reason for the potency of this happening, which has successfully managed to contain alcoholism. There is a sense in which a story is a more convincing way to pass a message than any other medium. I was not surprised…