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• Demand for credit remains high from financially-stressed consumers.
• Banks and lending institutions had emerged as crucial players in Kenya’s recovery journey.
• According to the Central Bank of Kenya, the NPL rate stood at 14.0% at the end of June.

A new report now indicates that the Covid-19 pandemic is continuing to have an impact on the Kenyan credit market, with banks and lending institutions having to adjust their operations to the current economic climate.

Although demand for credit remains high from financially-stressed consumers, the latest TransUnion Q2 2021 Kenya Market Analytics Report shows a decline in the number of active accounts, clients and new accounts opened compared to the previous quarter.

Ongoing consumer demand for credit saw the value of new loans disbursed during the second quarter increase by 2.5% from the first quarter, from Sh486.6 billion to Sh499.0 billion.

This was driven largely by growing demand for the M-Pesa …

The AfCFTA is the largest trade agreement, by composition of countries enjoined, since the formation of the World Trade Organization. Currently, 54 out of the 55 African countries have signed the AfCFTA, with 41 having ratified it.

The agreement is set to ultimately open up the African market to trade freely, will boost intra-African trade and trigger structural transformation with the goal of reducing poverty.…

The programme has also engaged over 50 official partners in addition to 35 linkage partners and who have enabled the project to link 37,851 youths to digital and digitally enabled jobs on more than 56 digital work platforms.

Carole Kariuki, KEPSA Chief Executive Officer said that (63%) of adult Kenyans nationally were aware of the digital gig economy and that awareness of the Ajira Digital Programme had increased from 5.5 million people (14%) in 2019 to 7.3 million people (29%) in 2021.…

• The AfCFTA agreement will boost East Africa’s manufactured exports to the rest of Africa
• Textiles & clothing exports will increase by 100% under the agreement
• Experts have recommended the rolling out of private sector sensitization campaigns on the AfCFTA

East African Community (EAC) partner states have been urged to finalize and submit tariff offers under the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement (AfCFTA) to enable the bloc to tap into the 1.3 billion continental markets with a Gross Domestic Product of USD 3 trillion.

In a statement, the East African Business Council Vice Chairman Denis said the AfCFTA is set to boost East Africa’s manufactured exports to the rest of Africa.

In particular, textiles & clothing exports will increase by 100%, heavy manufacturing by 63%, light manufacturing by 61%, processed food by 54% while livestock & meat products by 39%.

Karera said that the political will to duly implement the …

• Carrefour only had two stores before the takeover
• Shoprite, the previous owner of the space, has exited Uganda after 21 years of operations
• Majid Al Futtaim is currently on an expansion spree in East Africa 

French retailer Carrefour has entered into an agreement with Shoprite Checkers Uganda Limited to take over its Shoprite franchise in the country.

Under the deal, Shoprite will transfer six of its Ugandan stores’ leases to Majid Al Futtaim, Carrefour’s parent company, by end of year.

Majid Al Futtaim currently operates two stores in Uganda, under the Carrefour banner.

Following the implementation of the agreement, Majid Al Futtaim will expand its footprint to eight Carrefour stores.

Commenting on the deal, Hani Weiss, CEO of Majid Al Futtaim Retail said: “We welcome the opportunity to bring our unique Carrefour offering of unbeatable value range, international standards to more customers across Uganda.

He added that the agreement represents …

Regional carrier Jambojet has commenced operations to North Kivu Province Capital, Goma in the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, to become the first low-cost carrier to fly the route, and also the only direct flight between Nairobi and the Eastern DRC city.

In a statement, the airline said it will be flying twice, on Monday and Friday, from its hub at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Nairobi, to Goma International Airport. This is set to increase to 4 times weekly, as demand grows.

Jambojet Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Karanja Ndegwa, said flying to Goma is one step towards growing Jambojet’s footprint in Africa.

“We are excited about the growth prospects in the region. We have an ambitious plan to grow our network, and we are proud to be the first low-cost airline to venture into this route,” said Karanja.

Jambojet currently flies to 6 destinations including Mombasa, …

The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) released the Economic Survey 2021, indicating that the economy contracted by 0.3% in 2020, from the restated 5.0% growth recorded in 2019.

The contraction is mainly attributable to the slowdown in economic activities due to emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic which resulted in sharp declines in demand and supply of goods and services.

The contraction was spread across all sectors of the economy but the sectors that were hard hit included the accommodation and food serving activities, education, and professional and administrative services.

Kenya’s unemployment rate doubles -KNBS

Here are some of the report’s observations:

The agriculture, forestry and fishing activities grew at a faster rate of 4.6% compared to the 2.3% growth recorded in 2019. This was despite a contraction in global demand in 2020 due to the prevailing economic situation brought about by the pandemic.

Growth in the manufacturing sector was …

KCB Bank Kenya and the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industries (KNCCI) Mombasa Chapter have signed a partnership to accelerate the provision of credit to enterprises.

In a statement, the partners say the deal will see micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) access financial and non-financial solutions to help them recover from the fallout occasioned by the Covid-19 pandemic.

KCB Bank Acting Director of Retail Banking Michael Kungu said the partnership will enable MSMEs greater access to financing, helping them to improve their livelihoods while contributing to the country’s recovery from the pandemic.

“We are excited about this partnership with the Mombasa Chapter, it enables us to open a path for more credit to the Small and Medium-Sized entrepreneurs,” he said in Mombasa during the sign off ceremony.

Beyond the credit line, members of the KNCCI Mombasa chapter will also access non-financial solutions including advisory, networking opportunities, training, and …

Kenya’s National Cereals and Produce Board has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Safaricom’s DigiFarm Kenya Ltd to help small-scale farmers in Kenya access post-harvest management services through the digital platform. 

The MoU comes at a time when a new survey has indicated that African farmers are missing out on agritech innovations that could supercharge the sector with opportunities for youth.

The board said it shall offer post-harvest management services to farmers present on the platform, while DigiFarm will connect NCPB to small-scale farmers, who will in turn, access NCPB services at prevailing rates.

DifiFarm bypasses middlemen, giving small-holder farmers direct access to low-cost seeds and fertiliser, credit providers, and bulk purchasers of their produce.

NCPB Managing Director J. Kimote said the MoU is aligned to the agriculture hub model that the board is required to establish under the Reforms.

“The hub shall provide a one-stop shop for farmers …

A new report by Global Fund has found that the COVID-19 pandemic had a devastating impact on the fight against HIV, TB and malaria in 2020.

The Result Report shows that while some progress was made, key programmatic results have declined for the first time in the history of the Global Fund, which is now marking its 20^th anniversary.

Global Fund Executive Director Peter Sands said that while they had hoped to focus this year’s results report on progress achieved against HIV, TB and malaria over the last two decades, the 2020 numbers force a different focus.

“They confirm what we feared might happen when COVID-19 struck,” Sands said.
The Results Report reveals the catastrophic impact the COVID-19 pandemic had on the fight against TB worldwide.

In 2020, the number of people treated for drug-resistant TB in the countries where the Global Fund invests dropped by a staggering 19%, …