Author: Opinion

It is common knowledge that for an economy to fully develop its insurance industry must be robust and dynamic to meet all the challenges in that economy. This includes but is not limited to developing products suited for the particular economy, and developing products fast. The industry must think on its feet.  Other factors also come into play and all these complement one another so as to achieve the overall growth target of the industry. One of the most important drivers of insurance penetration is the intermediaries comprising of agents and brokers. They are the vital link that connects the…

Twiga Cement (TPCC on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange) on Friday, May 22, 2020, released its Annual Report and audited accounts for the year ended 2019. Revenues grew 6% and net profits rose 5% in 2019 from the year earlier. Dividends were steady at TZS 290 per share for the third year running.   Twiga is the dominant cement company in Tanzania. It is the 19th-biggest company overall in East Africa by market value and the fifth-biggest in Tanzania, according to the latest African Business rankings.  The company is a subsidiary of German multinational Heidelberg Cement, which owns 69.3%. The other 30.7% trades on the DSE and is owned by thousands of small…

Africa has so far escaped the worst health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the continent looks like it could be the worst hit from the economic fallout of the crisis: 80 million Africans could be pushed into extreme poverty if action is not taken. And disruptions in food systems raise the prospect of more Africans falling into hunger. Rural people, many of whom work on small-scale farms, are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of the crisis. It is therefore vital that the COVID-19 response address food security and target the rural poor. At this time, the international development agenda…

By Caroline K.  There is something very … approachable about Mary; she gives off a welcoming presence. As the owner of a successful public relations company, she is a pioneer in her own right. Having started the business at the age of 23, she has come a long way to becoming the person she is now. She shares on what has made her journey a successful one this far.  In your opinion, what does it take to run a successful PR company?  To be honest, I wouldn’t want to make it sound like there is a one-size fits all formulae for success but I…

It feels very appropriate to talk about investing in disruptive innovation at a time when all of our lives have been so seriously disrupted by Covid-19.   Many investors are drawn to the “retail” investments peddled by banks and insurers. Huge amounts of money are given to East African governments in the form of Treasury Bonds and Bills that pay between 9% and 15% per annum before withholding taxes are applied. And post-Covid what will your KES, UGX, ZAR, TZS or RFR actually be worth? And how safe do you think East African government debt will actually be? The default investment for…

The grasp of the Coronavirus has been unrelenting; like the grim reaper, it continues its deadly march around the economies of the world, sucking the soul of one sector after another, leaving a trail of death and destruction.   The flower industry has not been left unscathed, being one of the hardest hit sectors. Plummeting revenues have been the plight of flower farmers, who have been disposing of blooms meant for export that have been wilting by the day. Covid-19 has upended the flower industry and crushed consumer demand in the international market, incurring a net-loss of well over Ksh.8 billion (US$74.7 million) in just a…

The African fashion industry is hanging on by a thread and stitch, as it continues to suffer plummeting revenues in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, swiftly thrusting it into economic distress. According to the research group Euromonitor, the apparel and footwear industry is cumulatively estimated to be worth $31 billion. However, the vibrant industry is teetering on the edge of a precipice, with a plethora of challenges that have brewed up a storm, with rippling effects across the supply chain due to its interconnected nature. Covid-19 has just stirred up a hornets’ nest in the industry that was already on high alert.  Prior to the pandemic, the…

This article aims to highlight the challenges and implications of COVID-19 in the agricultural sector using current industry trends and outcomes to forecast the impact of the pandemic on agricultural value chains and consumer behaviour in the short, medium and long term.  Most importantly, however, this report proffers actionable innovations and systems that can be adopted and scaled up to negate the effects of the pandemic on food supplies to urban areas and industrial processors in Nigeria.  WHERE WE ARE NOW:  Short term (1-3months)   Disruption of supply chains due to inter and intrastate border closures. An example being the pileup of trucks on the Kano-Kaduna road due to shutdowns on what…

As soon as East African countries restricted movements and public gatherings in response to the rising cases of Covid-19, perhaps owing to the scarcity of information on the pandemic, misinformation flew around social media platforms, causing an overload of fear across the region. Kenya and Uganda were the first to take precautionary measures as Tanzania adopted a more relaxed stance towards the pandemic, which is being seen as a threat to Africa and the world. During this past week to date, Kenyans on Twitter and East Africans at large have been tweeting information about Tanzania, making it the fourth most…

Africa remains one of the regions with the greatest growth potential in the world with African organisations focusing their growth strategies beyond borders. With these growth strategies come complex new risks which demand sophisticated cross-border insurance solutions. Doing business between different African countries means that all involved need comprehensive cross-border insurance, as this can protect operations by covering all potential risks that may arise between different legal frameworks. DLA Piper’s Luc Bigel and Hamza Akli share insight on Africa’s challenges in this regard and how to structure an efficient, cost-effective insurance programme for cross border risks. What are the main…