Month: July 2019

Kenya’s Equity Bank has been named Africa’s Best Digital Bank for 2019 at the Euromoney Awards for Excellence, validating its role in delivering simple, fast, convenient and affordable banking products and services to customers.

Equity has been recognised for being a bank that shows true leadership in its digital offerings, both in corporate and retail banking, and uses technology to benefit both clients and the efficiency of the institution, placing digital at the heart of its business.

Digitisation has seen 93 per cent of loans disbursed by the bank, being accessed through the mobile channels, while 97 per cent of all cash-based transactions are happening outside Equity Bank branches, with mobile and agency channels taking the lion’s share.

READ ALSO:Fintech drives Equity Bank’s diaspora remittances to Ksh100Bn

Digitisation of the customer journey has eased customer experience leading to growth of digital payment transactions by 94 per cent in the …

Economic diplomacy can conquer poverty and create more jobs in Africa, President Uhuru Kenyatta has said.
The Kenyan President has since called on those in positions of power to provide quality leadership by getting actively involved in economic diplomacy that delivers opportunities for growth and transformation.

President Kenyatta spoke at Avani Victoria Falls Resort in the tourist town of Livingstone in Zambia, when he addressed the inaugural National Economic Summit (NES) at the invitation of President Dr Edgar Lungu.

READ ALSO:Why it’s too expensive for Africa trading internationally

Economic diplomacy is an engine that developing countries are employing to drive faster economic development especially in Africa.

It is becoming a major theme of the external relations of virtually all countries.  Economic Diplomacy promotes a country’s foreign and financial relations in support of its foreign policy.

Current trends include increasing collaboration between state and non-official agencies, and increased importance given …

By 2055, according to the UNDP, the continent’s youth population aged 15-24 is expected to be more than double the 2015 total of 226 million.…

A nation-wide tree planting initiative kicked off on the morning of Monday 29th July aimed at breaking the world record of planting 200 million saplings on a single day. India currently holds the world record. They, however, beat that record and planted 350 million trees with hours.

Officially launched by Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in May, the nation-wide reforestation program, also popularly known as green legacy, is aimed at recovering the trees and forests that have been lost over the years.

Getahun Mekuria, Ethiopia’s Minister of Innovation and Technology, tweeted estimates of the number of trees being planted throughout the day Monday. By early evening, he said 353,633,660 tree seedlings were planted in 12 hours.

Staff and representatives from the UN family, African Union, Diplomatic Corps and Ethiopians from all walks of life gathered in Gulele Botanical Gardens and in a park in central Addis Ababa to play their …

Tanzania suffers from an extreme shortage of electricity access standing at 32.8 per cent of its 57 million people.…

In her quest to pursue more renewable energy, Kenya has injected an additional 79 megawatts of geothermal power to the national grid.

This follows the completion of Unit 1 of Olkaria V Geothermal Power Plant by the Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) PLC.

The Unit was first synchronized to the grid on the June 28 and thereafter subjected to commissioning tests. It was then taken through a series of load tests until it attained its full design output of 82.7MW.

Commenting on the milestone, KenGen Managing Director & CEO, Mrs. Rebecca Miano, said the additional capacity would play a significant role in supporting Kenya’s power needs while enhancing the amount of green energy in the national grid.

“We are delighted to announce the completion of the first unit of Olkaria V Geothermal Power Plant and subsequently injecting 79 MW to the national grid. This brings to 612MW the total amount …

The harmonisation is in line with that of the five-member countries of the East African Community (EAC).…

For Jacqueline Wambui, a resident of Nairobi, living with the HIV virus has been a challenge. As an activist and a person living with the virus, she has gone through several treatment regimens as she manages her condition. However, none seem to have worked better than the new approved WHO recommended medication.

The World Health Organization recommends dolutegravir (DTG)-based treatment as the preferred first-line regimen for people living with HIV.

Jacque currently runs the Advocacy and Communications function at the network. Her educational background is in HIV counseling and training.

She is an HIV positive activist with a special interest in sexual and reproductive health for young HIV positive women and girls and advocating for their rights. Jacqueline was put on several different antiretroviral regimens, including d4T (stavudine), nevirapine and efavirenz before being switched to TLD (tenofovir/lamivudine/dolutegravir).

“The main differences dolutegravir (DTG) has made is that it has much fewer …

East Africa Fruits, an innovative social enterprise that supports smallholder farmers in Tanzania through the trade and marketing of fresh produce and grains, has recently been named a Certified B Corporation.

The company joins a global community of almost 3,000 businesses working in 150 industries in more than 60 countries for this prestigious recognition.

Certified B Corporations are businesses that meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose.

As consumers increasingly demand that businesses use their influence as a force for good, Certified B Corporations are at the forefront of purpose-driven entities that are finding sustainable solutions to some of the world’s most pressing problems and redefining financial success in the global economy.

“Earning B Corp status is such a distinctive honor for our team,” said Elia Timotheo, Founder and Managing Director of East Africa Fruits. “As a …

Cameroon plans to increase access to power to 88 per cent of all people in electrified areas by 2022. …