Author: Wanjiku Njugunah

Stakeholders of agriculture on the continent have urged governments to work with the private sector to build resillient food systems to bridge the widening gap in production.

Speaking during the Alliance for a Green Revoluton in Africa (AGRA)  organized Africa Green Revolution Forum (AGRF) Summit last week, speakers reiterated that food security cannot be achieved without a gvernment facilitated enabling environemnt for agribusiness to thrive. 

The summit was held ahead AGRF ,  slated for September in Nairobi, where   leaders, while celebrating the milestones the agriculture sector has made over the years, called on enhanced collaboration in transforming the continent’s food systems  amid rising concerns over global food shortages owing to increasing population, shrinking land and climate change.

“As we look at innovative ways of producing food to feed our people, assist our farmers and bolsters agribusinesses, we must explore ways of working together to actualize this commitment. The partnership between …

Listed real estate is also expected to continue performing poorly in 2021 with the Fahari I-Reit having opened the year at a relatively low trading price of Sh5.8 per share.

This is coupled with the expected negative performance of the office sector and lack of investor appetite in the instrument due to negative investor sentiments.…

The Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA) says it has stepped up plans to guarantee quality medical products and technologies supply to more than 8,000 facilities in the national public health care system, with a floating of two competitive tenders for pharmaceutical products.

In a statement, KEMSA says the newly floated tenders are open for local manufacturers and related suppliers, including youth, women and persons with disability-owned enterprises, which can participate under the Access to Government Procurement Opportunities (AGPO) program, among other supplier categories.

Kenyan and international bidders seeking to supply Health Products and Technologies (HPTs) under a two-year framework model converged at the College of Insurance, Nairobi, Monday for a pre-bid conference.

The move comes at a time when the Authority is trying to regain trust and revamp its public image following the questionable and inflated Sh7.8 billion Covid-19 supplies tenders in which billions might have been misappropriated or stolen.…

The United Nations has released a report indicating that there was a dramatic worsening of world hunger in 2020, much of it likely related to the fallout of COVID-19.

The multi-agency report estimates that around a tenth of the global population – up to 811 million people – were undernourished last year, even though the pandemic’s impact has yet to be fully mapped.

The number suggests it will take a tremendous effort for the world to honour its pledge to end hunger by 2030.

This year’s edition of The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World is the first global assessment of its kind in the pandemic era.

The report is jointly published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and the World Health Organization …

Business people in the East African Community are now set to benefit through prompt resolution and intervention of issues disrupting trade, following the launch of the EAC-EABC Technical Working group (TWG).

Based in Arusha Tanzania, the Technical Working Group launched by the East African Community (EAC) and East African Business Council (EABC) – the umbrella body bringing together private sector associations in East Africa- is tasked with receiving and synthesizing issues received from the private sector at various levels and advise on appropriate solutions.

A statement by the EAC-EABC has revealed that the team will be chaired by EAC Director General for Customs and Trade, Kenneth Bagamuhunda and co-chaired by EABC CEO John Bosco Kalisa. It will also entail members from the national apex private sector associations in the EAC region.

The team will be responsible for following up on challenges disrupting intra-EAC trade raised by businesses and support their …

Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta has commissioned two key projects at the Konza Technopolis, a key flagship project of the country’s ambitious Vision 2030.

The President inaugurated an eight-story headquarters of Konza Technopolis Development Authority (KoTDA), which is located in Machakos County.

Kenyatta also opened the National Data Centre located at the Technopolis.

The ultra-modern office block is expected to provide KoTDA staff and partners a conducive on-site working environment to support the accelerated roll-out of the techno city.

On the other hand, the data center will offer reliable infrastructure and business-friendly services through a superior ICT backbone.

The data center will host East Africa’s biggest data center, with a capacity of 1.6 petabytes, according to the Standard.

It is fully equipped with smart city facilities and services to support the technopolis, as well as developers and small enterprises.

Kenyatta said the progress signals the Government’s commitment to the completion of …

Kenya’s national carrier Kenya Airways has launched a centre which it says will be used to mentor the youth.

In a statement, the company says the centre, dubbed ‘Fahari Innovation Hub’, will act as a springboard for new ideas and data-driven innovations to accelerate impact-driven solutions that address some of the societal and business challenges.

Kenya Airways Chief Executive Officer, Allan Kilavuka said the Fahari Innovation Hub has already been operating virtually for about one year.

He added that with the setting of a physical workspace, the hub will provide a centre for strategic innovation management offering opportunities for co-creation, collaboration, networking, research, and learning.

“At the pace at which change accelerates, especially now in the middle of a global pandemic, we have become increasingly aware of the need to be innovative as we position the business as a resilient, forward-looking and sustainable company with a deliberate inclusive agenda of …

African Development Bank Group has approved two grants worth $83.6 million to boost cross-border trade in electricity between Ethiopia and Djibouti and to deepen integration in the Horn of Africa sub-region.

In a statement, the bank’s board said the funds comprise a $69.65 million grant to Ethiopia and a second grant of $13.93 million to Djibouti.

Both have been sourced from the African Development Fund, which is the African Development Bank’s concessional financing window.

The Ethiopia–Djibouti Second Power Interconnection project will entail the construction of nearly 300 km of interconnector line, 170 km of transmission lines, and new construction or renovation of substations in the two countries.

Commenting on the approval,  Bank’s Director of Power Systems Development Batchi Baldeh said the first interconnection line is reaching its power transfer capacity limit due to several developments in both countries, such as the industrial development in the eastern part of Ethiopia, the …

Kenyan and Tanzanian manufacturers have called for the expedited resolution of non-tariff barriers (NTBs) and the review of the East African Community Common External Tariff (EAC CET).

This was said during the trade investment forum held on Thursday, hosted by Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) and Confederation of Tanzania Industries (CTI) in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, to discuss trade promotion between the two states.

Kenya’s exports to Tanzania declined from US$342.9 million in 2016 to US$294.9 million in 2020 while its exports to the rest of the world grew from US$5.7 billion in 2016 to 6.02 billion in 2020.

On the other hand, Tanzania’s exports to Kenya grew from US$126.2 million in 2016 to US$258.2 million in 2020, while her exports to the world grew from US$4.4 billion in 2016 to US$5.2 billion in 2020.

Speaking during the forum, the High Commissioner of Kenya to Tanzania, Dan Kazungu noted that …

The affordable housing sector in Kenya is well set to provide attractive opportunities to investors.

This is according to Vivian Ombwayo, Director of Research and Valuation at Broll Kenya who said this will be driven by the government’s investment in the 2021-22 national budget into the sector, combined with attractive incentives for private developers.

Commenting on the same, Jess Cleland, COO Outside of SA, Valuations & Intel at Broll said the affordable housing sector in Kenya offers developers an opportunity to diversify their portfolios, especially those concentrating on the commercial-user space.

“It means they are able to diversify into the residential sector, thanks to attractive government incentives,” he added.

Vivian and Cleland spoke when they presented a research report on the sector at the eighth annual East Africa Property Investment (EAPI) Summit.

The experts added that the abundant housing opportunities in Kenya also allow complementary users to be included in …