Author: Francis Muli

Founded in 1919, the Automobile Association of Kenya (AA of Kenya) has grown to over 100,000 members in the country, becoming the biggest motorist association in the country. AA, as it is famously known, was started with the aim of promoting and safeguarding the interests of motorists, providing information and advice about the purchase, maintenance and repair of vehicles, negotiating attractive insurance premiums, road mapping and the setting up of petrol depots. Along the way, the association has built arguably the best driving schools in Kenya, preferred by most organisations that want to train their drivers. However, Kahawa Tungu has…

Safaricom has announced that it has permanently adjusted bandwidth for its home fibre customers. The current speeds were extended to customers last year during the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic. This means that home fibre customers will now be getting double speeds for the packages they pay for. Diamond package customers will also get more than double the speeds at 250 percent. Gold and Diamond package customers will also enjoy secure net services at no extra fees when the adjusted rates take effect permanently on March 1, 2021. Read: What You Need To Know About Securenet, Safaricom’s Home Fibre Antivirus…

The World Bank has extended a 72 Million grant to Meru County towards the improvement of the water supply and sewerage systems in urban areas. Water Trust Fund and Meru Water and Sewerage Services officials signed the grant from the World Bank in an event witnessed by Water Cabinet Secretary Sicily Kariuki and Governor Kiraitu Murungi. Among the targeted areas include Muriri, Giaki, Nkubu, and Kanyekine where the pipeline will be extended. Kiraitu also took the opportunity to show appreciation to the government for a Sh1 billion water and sewerage system in Meru town. He appealed for more assistance to…

Kenya Airways (KQ) has become one of the first airliners to convert their Boeing 787 Dreamliner into a “Preighter” (passenger aircraft used as a freighter), even as the Covid-19 pandemic takes a toll on passenger flight businesses across the world. On Monday, KQ announced that the conversion would go a long way into adapting to the “new normal”, which would see the carrier turn around from loss-making. “We are delighted this morning to make aerospace history with a first time ever cabin cargo repurposing of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner into a “Preighter” (passenger aircraft used as a freighter). The project…

Lancet has launched a verification system to help the public against unscrupulous people issuing fake Covid-19 lab reports with Lancet_PLK headers. The 24-hour USSD mobile service will enable users to instantly authenticate the reports. To use the service, you will be required to dial *727# followed by the reference number and then hush # If a report is authentic, the user will receive a message bearing details such as the name, age, gender, test requested, and collection date. These details should correspond to the ones issued on the report. Read also: Kagwe Tells Kenyans To “Resist” Questionable Labs, Says Lancet…

Since April 2020, millions of Kenyans were locked out of accessing loans by mobile lending apps, after the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) denied them access to Credit reference Bureaus (CRBs) information. Some apps even exited the Kenyan market, while others returned after a short while, citing a difficult working environment. With time, some mobile lenders came back, but this time only lending to a section of customers considered to have a good repayment record. Read: 337 Digital Mobile Lenders Barred From Listing Borrowers With CRBs “We stopped lending in March through April and May (2020) but we had to make…

Telegram topped the list of the most downloaded non-game apps in 2021. a report from SensorTower research group shows. The app jumped from position nine in December 2020 to top the list with 63 additional downloads from January 2020. Whatsapp fell to the fifth position overall, perhaps due to a mass exodus preceding the announcement of their privacy policy update. The messaging app was the third most installed app on both Google Play Store and the Apple App Store in December 2020. It fell to sixth and seventh position in January 2021 respectively. Signal, a newcomer to the top 10…

Police in Chogoria Town in Tharaka Nithi County are investigating an instance where a middle-aged woman stabbed her lover after he allegedly refused to sleep with her. According to a police report, the suspect identified as Susan Gakii stabbed Martin Kahiga, 42, after he refused to spend a night with her in her house. Later, Ms Gakii attempted suicide by stabbing herself in the stomach. The incident happened after the two came from a date in Polepole market centre in Chogoria Town. “This led to a confrontation. Gakii, thereafter, picked a kitchen knife and stabbed Kahiga in the right side…

Four suspects have been arrested by the Border Patrol Unit (BPU) for supplying arms, ammunition and ration to warring factions in the strife-torn Turbi-Sololo border. BPU officers who were on targeted patrol following a tip-off from members of the local community spotted a county government vehicle registration number 10CG016A suspected to be distributing supplies to bandits in the thickets of Funa Qumbi. “After giving chase and intercepting the vehicle, it was established that two of its occupants were county government employees. One of the employees was in possession of an AK-47 assault rifle, with 10 rounds of 7.62mm calibre special,”…

Detectives in Mbeere are investigating a murder incident, where a man allegedly killed his wife, 28 and his two children aged nine and five in the wee hours of Sunday. According to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), David Kariuki Nyaga had locked up his family inside their house in Kiamukuyu, before executing them one after the other, in a scene described by the detectives who documented it as gory. “Earlier, our officers had been informed by the village Assistant Chief Anthony Munyiri of the incident and together with their Police counterparts, rushed to the scene. Unfortunately, by the time…

Global smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi has unveiled its first quad-curved waterfall screen concept smartphone. The curve display melts in all four edges, top to bottom, left to right.This means that the phone will not have any buttons or ports on any sides. According to Xiaomi, the concept “extends the limits of the display to infinity” and enables a “true, port-free unibody design.” The smartphone’s frame is almost entirely covered by screen featuring an 88 degree hyper quad-curved screen design that allows visual interfaces to flow freely over the phone’s surfaces like water. Read: Xiaomi Overtakes Apple to Take Third Spot in…

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has ordered banks and financial institutions to close down accounts involved in the transfer or exchange of cryptocurrencies. In a statement dated February 5, CBN announced that Cryptocurrency in Nigeria is prohibited, and financial institutions that go against the directive face “severe regulatory sanctions”. “The Bank (CBN) hereby wishes to remind regulated institutions that dealing in cryptocurrencies or facilitating payments for cryptocurrency exchanges is prohibited. Accordingly, all DMBs. NBFIs and OFIs are directed to identify persons and/or entities transacting in or operating crypto currency exchanges within tier systems and ensure that such accounts are…

Google is now considering developing an anti-tracking feature for Android users, Bloomberg has reported. The company seems to be borrowing a leaf from Apple who have made it a requirement for app developers to first seek permission from device owners before accessing their personal details. This latest revelation signifies a shift towards user privacy in the internet industry. Unlike Apple, Google is exploring less stringent ways to reduce data collection and cross app tracking for Android users, Bloomberg reports. The tech giant hopes to strike a balance between fulfilling users needs for privacy and app and advertisers financial needs. Read:…

Garissa County Referral Hospital has officially opened its children’s diabetes management centre constructed and equipped by the Safaricom Foundation. The clinic which has been furnished with modern equipment for diabetes detection and management will provide services to residents of Garissa, Kitui, Tana River, Isiolo and Wajir Counties. The Safaricom foundation invested KES 12 million in constructing and equipping the clinic as part of its Children with Diabetes programme launched in 2019. Read: Shikusa Borstal Institution gets ICT learning boost from the Safaricom Foundation Safaricom Trustee Barrak Odero said that the Diabetes programme has reached over 50,000 community members in all…

Sasini Plc sent home 1,364 in the year ended September 2020, attributed to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on the economy. The agricultural firm with a focus on tea and coffee ended the year with 2,520 employees, becoming one of the biggest job cuts in Kenya for a listed firm. This was despite the company recording improved sales, soaring by 48.3 percent to Ksh4.1 billion compared to Ksh2.7 billion recorded in the same period in 2019. In the period under review, the company recorded a Ksh12.6 million profit, as compared to a net loss of Ksh337.7 million in 2019.…