Author: David Indeje

Kenya’s Ministry of ICT has published a whitepaper that provides evidence to support policymakers in developing a country-level strategy on talent cultivation for the digital economy. Titled ‘ICT Talent Cultivation for Kenya’s Digital Economy’, found out that the country’s progress towards the digital economy is still in its early days. It is ranked in the top 3 or 5 in Africa in most indexes but lower in the global context. For instance, Kenya is ranked 70 out of 79 countries by the Huawei Global Connectivity Index (2020), 84 out of 134 countries by Network Readiness Index (2020) and 105 out…

What is Facebook Protect? This is a programme designed to protect accounts of users at high risk of being targeted by cybercriminals. The programme has been rolled out in Kenya and other countries. The program was first tested in the US in 2018. “Facebook Protect is a security program for the people that are most likely to be highly targeted by malicious hackers or other adversarial threats. These include human rights defenders, journalists and activists, and are often at the centre of public debate. They hold governments and companies accountable,” explained Nathaniel Gleicher, Head of Security at Facebook. “There are…

Kenya on Thursday launched the COVID-19 immunization campaign at four border points targeting female traders and long-distance truck drivers. Funded by external donors and implemented by Kenya Private Sector Alliance and Nairobi-based TradeMark East Africa, the vaccination exercise targets over 40,000 cross-border female traders, truck drivers and logistics professionals. The campaign began at the Busia One-Stop Border Post and will be rolled out to the Malaba, Isebania and Taveta border entry points. Lucy Mecca, Vaccine Quality and Supply manager at the National Vaccines Immunization Program, said the two-month inoculation exercise at the border points aims to mitigate COVID-19 infections among…

Diaspora remittance flows to Kenya increased by 10 per cent, from US$2,796 million in 2019 to US$3,095 million in 2020, and the Central Bank says it expects another ‘record year”. CBK projects that remittances will rise to about $3.4 billion this year, from $3.09 billion in 2020. Remittances were also strong at $337.4 million in October recording a 20.1 per cent increase between the period January-October 2021 compared to a similar period in 2020, and the banking sector remained “stable and resilient, with strong liquidity and capital adequacy ratios”. However, cost remains a challenge for the diaspora community and reducing…

KCB Group won’t expand further in Tanzania after failing to get the final regulatory approval to acquire Atlas Mara’s unit in Tanzania, African Banking Corporation Tanzania Ltd (BancABC). According to the lender, “…certain regulatory approvals have not been received within the prescribed timeframe specified in the Agreement”. “As a result, the Agreement has been terminated and accordingly, the parties will not proceed to complete the Transaction,” the lender said in a statement. KCB says it will continue to explore and pursue attractive regional expansion opportunities aimed at enhancing its regional participation in line with its expansion and growth strategy. The…

Kenya’s annual inflation eased to 5.8 per cent in November from the previous month’s 6.4 per cent, helped by lower increases in the cost of food and non-alcoholic beverages, government data showed on Tuesday. This is the lowest rate of the Consumer Price Index, seven months since April when inflation stood at 5.76 per cent. “This was mainly due to an increase in prices of commodities under food and non-alcoholic beverages (9.92%); transport (8.14%); and housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels (6.24%) between November 2020 and November 2021,” the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics said. The overall Consumer Price Index…