Author: Martin Mwita

The index signalled a solid decline in operating conditions, albeit one that was slower than those seen in April 2021 and during the second quarter of 2020.

“Economic activity started 2022 on a subdued note as evidenced by the Stanbic PMI reading that fell to the lowest level in nine months. The reading was below 50 which indicated a deterioration in business conditions from December,” Kuria Kamau, Fixed Income and Currency Strategist at Stanbic Bank commented.

While export demand grew marginally, domestic demand fell significantly as client spending was negatively affected by rising inflation and a resurgence in Covid-19 due to the Omicron variant, he noted.

Tony Elumelu, the Founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, has urged African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Heads of State to improve the business environment in their countries in order to drive industrialisation and wealth creation. Elumelu who is also the Chairman of the United Bank for Africa and Heirs Holdings said this whilst presenting the keynote speech on the theme “Industrialisation and Private Sector Engagement for Economic Transformation of ACP States” at the Presidential Dialogue of the 9th ACP Business Summit in Nairobi, Kenya.  READ ALSO:African, Caribbean and Pacific nations to defend trading systems Elumelu stated that industrialisation will not be…

Africa, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) group of nations will strongly defend multilateral trading systems in order to protect themselves from unfair trade practices, its leadership has said. This has emerged from the 9th African Caribbean and Pacific Summit of Heads of State and Government in Nairobi. READ:Africa, Caribbean and Pacific leaders expected in Nairobi for ACP Summit Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta, who has taken over the chairmanship of the group of 79 countries said. He will spearhead reforms and reinvigoration of the ACP for the next three years. He said that under his stewardship, Kenya will seek to promote and…

Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta has underscored the need for East African Community member states and the wider region to nurture peace and unity, saying colonial boundaries should not divide people. The President said the region stands to achieve faster development if its people work together in peace and harmony. READ ALSO:EAC countries rank among world’s rising stars of global trade “We need to live together as brothers and sisters and respect all communities in the region,” the President said. The President was speaking at State House, Nairobi, during a meeting with King Abdile Wabar Abdi, the Ethiopian-based traditional leader of…

Kenya’s low-cost carrier Jambojet on Monday made its first trip to Kigali International Airport as it launched scheduled flights between the Rwanda’s capital and Nairobi, bringing competition to RwandAir. With the launch of once daily flights from its Jomo Kenyatta International Airport hub, Jambojet officially becomes the first low-cost carrier to fly the route. READ ALSO:Jambojet cuts fares by 50 per cent in 72 hour sale offer This now brings competition to RwandAir’s doorstep which also flies to Nairobi at least three times a day. It operates domestic and international services to East Africa, Central Africa, West Africa, Southern Africa,…

India’s national airline has re-launched commercial operations to Kenya’s capital Nairobi, making a return to the route it abandoned a decade ago. Air lndia’s flight from Mumbai to Nairobi landed at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) on Wednesday with 100 passengers on board. READ ALSO:KQ boosted by increased India flight deals This marked the return of the airline to Kenya after 10 years.  It return is now seen a s a major boost for trade, investment and tourism activities between the two countries which have shared trade and economic ties for many years. The airline will offer four direct…

Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) Kenya has launched a prestigious product offering – the Standard Chartered Visa Infinite credit card. The Standard Chartered Visa Infinite credit card, targets the affluent segment by offering a range of value added benefits, including best-in-class privileges. Targeting high net-worth customers SCB Visa Infinite credit card, comes with unparalleled advantages and rewards. “We are constantly working towards bringing to our clients the highest quality of services available on the global market. The launch of the Visa Infinite credit card shows our bank’s commitment to bringing payment solutions that meet and exceed the expectations of our ever-expanding…

Kenya has become one of the latest countries to strengthen the fight on tax evasion and profit shifting with signing of a tax treaty, in the wake of rising malpractices by global multi-nationals. The national efforts to strengthen the country’s bilateral tax treaties, have received a boost with the signing of a multilateral convention to end tax avoidance in France. This week, the country signed the Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Convention at the 10th Anniversary Meeting of the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes (the Global Forum)…

Kenya has stepped up efforts to curb illicit financial flows (IFFs) through the signing of theYaoundé Declaration, with Africa losing $50 to $60 billion annually through illicit financial flows. The National Treasury Acting Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yatani has provided the much needed shot in the arm for the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) efforts to tackle illicit financial flows through the Yaoundé Declaration. While welcoming the commitment by the Government, KRA Commissioner General Githii Mburu said the instrument focuses on improving international tax cooperation through enhanced information sharing among the African Union (AU) member states to curb illicit financial flows. READ…

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has committed to explore new avenues of directly supporting efforts aimed at empowering Kenyan women in business. The commitment was made by the bank’s deputy director general Nnenna Nwabufo during a meeting with Kenya’s First Lady Margaret Kenyatta, on the sidelines of the ongoing Global Gender Summit in Kigali, Rwanda. Ms Nwabufo singled out capacity building activities for Kenyan women in business as one of the areas that the bank is keen on supporting. Kenyan women in business “We could do this through capacity building to enable women (Kenyan) to benefit from development projects implemented…