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- Kenya, Tanzania braces for torrential floods as Cyclone Hidaya approaches
- EAC monetary affairs committee to discuss single currency progress in Juba talks
- Transport and food prices drive down Kenya’s inflation to 5% in April
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- History beckons as push for Kenya’s President Ruto to address US Congress gathers pace
- IMF’s Sub-Saharan Africa economic forecast shows 1.2 percent GDP growth
Africa
- Kenya and Tanzania, already reeling from nature’s fury, now confront the looming threat of Cyclone Hidaya.
- Cyclone Hidaya’s trajectory places the eastern coast of Tanzania squarely in its crosshairs as neighbouring Kenya braces for floods.
- The relentless deluge gripping East Africa finds its origins in the El Nino weather pattern.
Millions of people in Tanzania and Kenya are on edge as Cyclone Hidaya, a formidable tempest, barrels toward the region, exacerbating the havoc wrought by ongoing heavy downpours and catastrophic floods that have claimed hundreds of lives across East Africa.
Kenya and Tanzania, already reeling from nature’s fury, now confront the looming threat of a cyclone poised to unleash further devastation, with forecasts predicting a grim landfall later on Friday, May 3rd.
At the moment, Cyclone Hidaya’s trajectory places the eastern coast of Tanzania squarely in its crosshairs, with fears mounting over its potential impact on neighbouring Kenya. As …
- US Congress members ask Speaker Mike Johnson to invite President Ruto to address the assembly.
- President Ruto will be visiting the US on May 23 to mark 60 years of US-Kenya diplomatic ties.
- If invited, President Ruto would become the first Kenyan Head of State to address a joint session of US Congress.
In a historic plan highlighting the deepening ties between the United States and Kenya, House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Michael McCaul (Republican – Texas) and Ranking Member Gregory Meeks (Democrat – New York) have jointly sent a letter to Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (Republican – Los Angeles, asking him to extend a formal invitation to President William Ruto of Kenya to address a joint session of Congress during his upcoming visit to the US, slated later in May.
“This year, we are celebrating the historic 60-year anniversary of the U.S.-Kenya diplomatic relationship. Such an invitation …
- The IMF has identified South Sudan, Burundi, and the DRC as East African Community member states poised for significant economic growth in the 2024–2025 period.
- GDP growth in Burundi is projected to increase from 4.3 to 5.4 percent and in the DRC from 4.7 to 5.7%.
- Kenya leads regionally with a projected GDP of $104 billion, ranking 7th overall among the continent’s largest economies.
The economic outlook for East African Community member states South Sudan, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is poised for significant economic growth in the 2024–2025 period. This prognosis by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) comes despite these nations grappling with conflicts, marking them as among the most fragile in the region.
In its latest regional economic outlook report for Sub-Saharan Africa, the IMF forecasts a noteworthy 1.2 percent gross domestic product (GDP) growth for South Sudan, from 5.6 to 6.8 percent, despite …
Regional financial services firm, Britam Holdings PLC has posted a profit after tax of Kshs 376.3 million from a loss after tax of Kshs 1.6 billion posted in the six months ending June 2021.
According to the firm, the improved performance is attributed to growth in premiums from new business and investment income from its broad investment portfolio.
The firm also registered significant growth in investment income following the moving of its investment portfolio to increase yields.
Investment income during the period grew to Kshs 4.9 billion, representing a 35 per cent growth compared to a similar period last year.
The Group also realized growth in revenue from both its local and regional businesses.
The regional businesses contributed 24 per cent of the Group’s gross earned premiums.
The Group’s gross earned premiums and fund management fees were up 5.7 per cent to Kshs 14.9 billion.
Britam’s Group Managing Director, Tavaziva …
Regional Financial Services Group, I&M Group PLC has announced an increase of 33 per cent after-tax profit for its 2021 half-year financial results up from UGX 102.5 billion to UGX 134.6 billion.
In a statement, the Group says its Total Assets recorded a growth of 12 per cent to close at UGX 12.2 trillion up from UGX 10.9 trillion in June 2020, bolstered by expansion into Uganda and increased private and public sector lending.
The Group adds that the acquisition of Orient Bank Ltd (OBL) in Uganda has expanded the Group’s balance sheet by UGX 753 billion as of the reporting date.
Net interest income also recorded growth of 28 per cent to UGX 285.2 billion up from UGX 221.1 billion in June 2020 attributed to increased interest income from government securities.
The Group’s total Non-Funded Income reduced by 6 per cent to UGX 124.9 billion from UGX 134.6 billion.…
Kenya’s Stima Savings and Credit Cooperative (SACCO) Limited has launched its Affordable Housing Mortgage Scheme in partnership with the Kenya Mortgage Refinance Company (KMRC), a treasury backed lender, targeting both individuals in formal and informal employment.
The purpose of the scheme is to offer affordable mortgages to members of the SACCO with bespoke terms.
For individuals who are employed, the SACCO will offer a loan up to a maximum of Sh4 million, at 9 percent interest rate, with a 25-years repayment plan.
For individuals in business or those with rental income, the loan will still be capped at Sh4 million, at 9.5 percent interest rate, with a repayment tenor of up to 20 years.
According to analysts from Cytonn Investment, an employed individual will be required to make monthly payments of about Sh33, 600 while a business home owner will pay Sh37, 300.
For salaried Kenyans, these payments are still …
Invest Africa has launched a new programme of support for over 500 African MSMEs.
In a statement, the company, which is a trade and investment platform for African markets, says it will be hosting the Next Generation Africa Forum to connect MSMEs across the Continent.
The forum will take place virtually on 16th September using a digital platform, with practical support from leading banks, VCs, multi-national tech companies and incubators, including Google, KPMG, DHL, Aon and 4G Capital.
“MSMEs form the backbone of Africa’s economies and are the engine of the region’s job creation drive, accounting for 70 percent of employment,” the company said in a statement.
The firm also noted that with a high proportion of informal enterprises, many of Africa’s MSMEs, which already faced significant challenges, have been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Addressing the structural difficulties that small businesses in Africa face, will therefore be essential …
Business confidence for Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) across most sectors is on the rise, according to the latest research by Mastercard.
The inaugural Mastercard Middle East and Africa (MEA) SME Confidence Index found that 76 percent of SMEs in the food, beverage and entertainment sector are optimistic about the next 12 months.
Confidence levels were highest among businesses in retail, closely followed by food, beverage and entertainment.
Forecasts in this sector are also positive, with 72 percent of SMEs projecting revenues that will either grow or hold steady. Almost half 47 percent are projecting an increase.
Access to training, skills and digitization key for future growth
As many regional economies gradually enter the normalization and growth phase, and social restrictions continue to ease, small and medium sized businesses in the MEA region’s food, beverage and entertainment sector have identified access to training and development support (55 percent), upskilling staff …
Liquid Intelligent Technologies has opened an Internet Point of Presence in Miami, connecting to the Liquid network via a South Atlantic subsea cable.
In a statement, the technologies company says the new POP is connected to their 100,000km of fibre across 11 countries on the continent and another 14 countries via the Operators Alliance Programme and Liquid Satellite Services.
This is part of Liquid’s East-West route between the US and Asia via Africa.
The company says the move will result in customers being able to leverage a better connection to the US, giving them access to Cloud services, OTT resources, Internet content and high-quality voice and video calls with family and business partners.
Speaking about the impact, David Eurin, Chief Executive Officer, Liquid Sea, said the new POP in Miami will enable US-based operators, businesses, OTT, Cloud service providers and CDN operators to access 40 data centres across Africa, including …
