Browsing: Kenya

Every month, Kenya’s Standard Gauge Railway moves an average of 200 cargo trains from the coastal city of Mombasa to Nairobi’s inland container depot. With it, it moves at least 1,000 containers to Nairobi. This has left a bitter taste among residents of Mombasa, who have over the years depended on the undertakings around the port for jobs.

SGR, which has been billed as the biggest transport infrastructure project in the Kenya’s history, is expected to haul about nine million tonnes of cargo to make a profit of Sh5.08 billion a year, averaging Sh424 million per month, compared with 990,488 tonnes carried in the first year when SGR made a loss of Sh10 billion.

The SGR has so far made Sh10.9 billion from cargo and passenger business since it started operating, according to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics’ economic indicators report released in December 2018.

The cracks on the …

Sports betting fans in Kenya, with an incentive to win a handsome load of cash, will have to rely on other outlets as large-players SportPesa and Betin quit the market in a rather disappointing manner.

The duo’s exodus, occurred shortly after a series of engagements with the government, proved to be a failure. SportPesa commented on it’s return ( to the market) conditions, citing that they would resume operations when “adequate taxation and non-hostile regulatory environment” are in place.

The latter was also compelled by the July hit, where the government ordered telcos to shut down 27 sports betting pay bills and shortcodes, SportPesa and Betin inclusively.

According to The Citizen report, the government of Kenya saw uneven distribution of the benefits within the sector, as sports betting companies garnered over $2 billion in 2018, but the government share stood at $40 million.

According to PWC, Kenya is the …

Nigeria’s technology Co-creation Hub (CcHUB), has taken total ownership of Kenya’s iHub for an undisclosed fee. The deal will see iHub’s team become part of CcHUB’s wider central support and strategy network, whilst retaining its name and senior management structure.

This is the second change of ownership for iHub which was in 2017 acquired by venture capital firm BSP Fund LLC.

An industry first for the African tech hub community, the acquisition of East Africa’s most prolific and reputable technology centre is the next step for CcHUB as it continues its mission to connect entrepreneurs, technologists and public bodies across the continent.

The move comes just seven months after CcHUB expanded into Kigali, Rwanda, with the launch of its Design Lab – the first creative space in Africa to focus solely on product design and technology innovation.

iHub, launched in 2010, is home to internationally-recognized companies such as BRCK and …

Bowmans Law firm, a leading pan African legal entity specializing in business deals, merger and acquisitions (M&A) is set to launch its base in Ethiopia and Mauritius at the beginning of October 2019. The move is seen as an expansion of the company to two countries where FDIs have remained high coupled with financial growth.

Bowmans is opening a fully-fledged office in Mauritius, having joined forces with FirmWise, a local firm that specialises in corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, banking and finance, investment funds, tax, compliance and private equity.

Robert Legh, chairman, and senior partner, says ‘This move, which is effective from 1 October 2019, is an investment in the ambitions and success of our clients across Africa. Mauritius and Ethiopia are key jurisdictions for many of our clients and our presence on the ground there will help us to better support them.’

The law firm already has a presence …

Alibaba Group and the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) will launch a digital map to track food-security issues across the globe.

The “Hunger Map LIVE” will leverage artificial intelligence, machine learning and data analytics to predict and track the magnitude and severity of hunger in close to real-time in more than 90 countries.

The map will allow the WFP, humanitarian-aid organizations and global leaders to identify negative trends early and enable better decision-making to improve response times and cut costs.

“The Hunger Map LIVE is a visual wake-up call every day, showing us a real-time snapshot of the problem and reminding all of us that we must do more to defeat hunger,” said WFP Executive Director David Beasley, speaking on the sidelines of this year’s UN General Assembly in New York.

The map will bring together publicly available information on food security, nutrition, conflict, weather, and macro-economic data to …

Nations that were lacking this momentum are now growing and modernising their economies…

Kenya is preparing to host several American companies during the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) Kenya annual Business Summit that will be held on November 4 – 5, 2018 in Nairobi.  More than 200 American companies will participate in the meeting that seeks to explore investment opportunities in Africa.

The Summit, now in its second year is held in partnership with the Kenya and U.S. governments as well as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and serves as an engagement platform for the U.S. and the greater East Africa region to focus on strengthening two-way, enterprise-driven, trade and investment, forging long-term economic ties and mutual prosperity.

AmCham Kenya Board President Phillipine Mtikitiki described this saying, “The Summit is an opportunity to present and discuss realistic, feasible, collaborative measures and ways in which American and local businesses can leverage the numerous opportunities available in the various sectors of the economies of …

President Uhuru Kenyatta has asked US investors to make Kenya their investment destination of choice in Africa, in the latest of his charm offensives in foreign markts.

The President has said his administration’s Big 4 Agenda, particularly the manufacturing component where the government’s plan is to lift the sector’s contribution to the economy from the current 8.4 per cent of GDP to 15 per cent by 2022, offers limitless investment opportunities for US companies.

READ ALSO:How Kenya plans to accelerate Big 4 Agenda

“The sector (manufacturing) presents major opportunities for local and foreign investors in areas such as agro-processing through value addition in key value chains such as textiles and leather, the maritime sector, construction, iron and steel, oil and gas,” the President said. 

President Kenyatta who spoke at a private sector forum hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce and attended by tens of top executives from leading …

Jomo Kenyatta International Airport is the 2nd fastest growing airport in the word cargo ranking. This has been revealed in the Airports Council International (ACI) latest World Airport Traffic Report, which highlights top airports for passengers, cargo and aircraft movements and showcases the world’s fastest-growing airports for 2018.

JKIA was ranked 2nd in the ‘Fastest Growing Airports (Handing over 250,000 metric tons of air cargo)’ category, after handling over 342,000 metric tons of air cargo in 2018, a 25% growth from the what was reported in the year 2017.

This ranking came as a surprise to many given the dwindling fortunes of Kenya Airways which has been facing a hard economic time coupled with staff strikes and poor profitability. Kenya Airways management has fallen out with its pilots over continued losses at the airline, in the latest of many stand-offs between the two groups. This is in the wake of …

Kenya is strategically positioning itself as the gateway to the vast African market as it seeks to attract investments into the country.

President Uhuru Kenyatta who has been on a charm offensive in foreign markets has called on Asian economies to use Kenya as a gateway to Africa’s market of over 1.2 billion people that is worth more than US$ 29 trillion.

President Kenyatta said Kenya is the best entry point for Asian businesses that want to trade in Africa with the coming into force of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA).

READ ALSO:Kenya seeks AfCFTA partnership on trade standards

“I invite you to use Kenya as a gateway to the African continent.  It is not only one of the top-ten fastest growing economies in Africa but is also one of the most pro-business Nations on the continent,” the President said when he delivered a keynote address at …