Author: Korir Issa

Across the globe, the rate of urbanization has grown tremendously with nearly 66 per cent of the world’s population predicted to be urban by 2050. Africa’s urban population has been growing at a very high rate – from about 27 per cent in 1950 to 40 per cent in 2015 and is projected to reach 60 per cent by 2050 according to UN-DESA, 2014. Most Africans have moved to urban centres to enhance their productivity and living standards and by 2019, 40.71 per cent of Sub-Saharan Africa’s total population lived in urban areas and cities. With the rapid urban growth…

Kenya has moved to increase the 10 million shillings minimum threshold required for foreign investors to obtain a trading certificate qualifying them for incentives such as tax rebates and investment deductions. According to Dr Fred Matiang’i, the Interior Cabinet Secretary, the ministry will be seeking approval from parliament regarding the amendment of the Kenya Investment Promotion Act including raising the minimum threshold. The law set a minimum of 100,000 US dollars (approximately 10 million Kenyan shillings) for the certificate, a figure the CS claims is too low given the size of the Kenyan economy. “For a country our size and…

The fintech industry in Africa is experiencing rapid growth, as startups enable services in what is a highly fragmented banking and financial ecosystem. Over the past few years, the sector has been one of the most funded among startups in the continent. The continent presents such a great opportunity for the fintech industry to grow, especially with millions of people remaining unbanked or lacking access to traditional financial services. Despite this growth and the making of huge technological advances, however, scaling the ecosystem is rare. A recent study by the Wheeler Institute for Business and Development which studied 716 fintech…

In new research by Mastercard, 81 per cent of the Middle East and Africa’s (MEA) women entrepreneurs have a digital presence for their businesses, compared to 68 per cent of their male counterparts. The study reveals that despite the gender gap and social challenges, entrepreneurial women across the world and in the region and across the globe are leading the way in tapping into the power of the digital economy to succeed and grow. According to Mastercard, women-owned small and medium enterprises (SMEs) believe there are huge benefits of a cash-free economy to their businesses. The digital footprint among the…

Absa Bank Kenya on Tuesday launched WhatsApp banking solutions that allow customers access to some of the popular digital transactions such as mobile money transfers, inter-account transfers, bill payments, balance inquiries. The innovation is a response to how digital banking has evolved in the past few years in a bid to open up new ways for banks to engage with and provide services to their customers, including through social media channels such as WhatsApp. Speaking during the launch of the service, Absa Bank Kenya Managing Director Jeremy Awori lauded the move as a demonstration of the bank’s commitment to continue…

Technology is an integral part of our lives, and that can include the way we read. Over the years, people have resolved to reading eBooks and listen to audiobooks, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic became prevalent. According to stats from The Association of American Publishers, eBooks, for the first ten months of 2020, were up 16.5 per cent compared to the 10 months of 2019, bringing in nearly 1 billion dollars. This is good news for podcasters looking to monetize their content. People with successful podcasts and a decent number of listeners can repurpose their episodes into revenue-generating eBooks. These…