Author: Francis Muli

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Global Fund have threatened to withdraw Ksh400 billion meant for Kenya, following graft allegations in the Kenya Medical Supplies Agency (Kemsa). According to reports, the two bodies have expressed concerns with the government over the misappropriations of donor funds meant for Covid-19. The Global Fund and USAID had earmarked the billions for the support HIV/Aids, tuberculosis and malaria programs for the next three years. Citizen TV reports that Kemsa could lose up to Ksh2 billion, as they are struggling to sell personal protective equipment (PPEs) that were bought at inflated prices.…

Majid Al Futtaim, the holding company for Carrefour Supermarket, has launched an initiative to support healthcare workers in Nairobi on the frontline of the fight against the Covid-19. Carrefour donated essential resources to the heroic healthcare workers of Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) — Kenya’s largest public hospital — and its affiliates, offering them much needed support during the pandemic. KNH is the premier health institution in Kenya, and has been spearheading efforts to combat Covid-19 by setting up isolation units and building the capacity of healthcare workers in the counties. Donations raised by Carrefour’s latest initiative included household appliances, such…

Today Huawei Technologies Kenya has announced the opening of the Seeds for the Future Sky program, open to all University undergraduates undertaking ICT related degrees. This will be the first time in its history the long-running program will be held virtually, and opens up the opportunity to students across the country. Huawei will support the internet costs of the participants to reduce barriers to participation. The event will be a 5 day intensive training with more than 20 mandatory and elective livestreamedand pre-recorded. 60 students will learn about the latest technology such as 5G, Cloud Computing and Artificial Intelligence as…

The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), through its Social Media platforms, has warned Kenyans against international calls scam dubbed “Wangiri”. The scam is called ‘Wangiri’ which is Japanese for “One Ring and cut”. The scam entails mobile phone users receiving missed calls from international phone numbers that they do not recognize. The idea behind the missed call is to loop you in through your curiosity. You can experience the same incident a couple of times which will intrigue you more, making you believe that indeed someone is trying to get in contact with you from abroad. The scam is widespread…

Safaricom is experimenting with a new feature on its web app to help you track your airtime and data consumption. The Safaricom web app has been around for a while now and allows you access to certain Safaricom services on your account. It functions a bit like the mySafaricom app which gives you access to Safaricom products and services. Since the web app is hosted on a web page, you have to log in and enter the OTP sent to your phone. Safaricom is only able to pick up your number over Safaricom data usage, so be sure to…

A number of users have reported that Google services including Gmail, Docs, Drive, Meet, Groups,Chat, Voice and Keep are not working. Google has confirmed on its Gsuite status dashboard that the services are experiencing disruptions. Many users have taken to Twitter to contribute to the topic using the tag Gmail Down. Some users have verified that file uploads are failing across the services, including attachments in Gmail to personal and Gsuite accounts. For some, composing or replying an email has become impossible. Google has announced that investigations into the matter are ongoing and will provide an update as soon as…

As the Corona Virus keeps most of the world on social media, new apps and websites are coming up and one of them that has become increasingly popular is OnlyFans. The online content sharing platform has become popular but is quite synonymous with adult content even though the platform does not cater exclusively to that market. So, what exactly is OnlyFans and how does it work? OnlyFans is a subscription website allowing content creators to cash in directly from viewership of their content. The site allows creators to upload any kind of content from recipes, creative articles, photography and many…

Ethics and Anti-corruption Commission (EACC) detectives this morning raided the homes and offices of Kirinyaga governor Anne Waiguru in Kerugoya and Nairobi, and carted away crucial documents in renewed graft investigations. Reports indicate that the early morning raid caught the governor by surprise, who has been facing graft allegations and abuse of office from Kirinyaga MCAs. EACC Central Regional Manager Charles Rasungu had on June 10 hinted on the case, saying that one of the investigation involves a number of tenders allegedly influenced by the governor. This comes a couple of months after Kirinyaga MCAs filed a motion to impeach…

Fourteen health facilities across the country have received new equipment worth Ksh5.7 million from the Safaricom Foundation’s Ndoto Zetu Initiative. In Nyamira County, Nyangweta health centre received a hemoglobin machine while Esianya Dispensary has a new oxygen concentrator and centrifuge machine. Katito hospital and Andingo Opanga health centre in Kisumu are the beneficiaries of a hemoglobin Machine and an equipped maternity wing respectively. From the Coast, Manoa Dispensary in Taita Taveta received delivery beds, baby warmers and medicine trolleys while Kwale’s Mazeras health centre now has new maternity beds and delivery coaches. Read: Safaricom Foundation Partners With Scope International to…

Microsoft will no longer support Internet Explorer effective August 17, 2021. In a blog post, Microsoft announced that the Microsoft Teams web app would no longer support Internet Explorer 11, which is the most recent version of the browser, from November 30 , 2020. Microsoft 365 apps and all other Microsoft services will end support for the browser by next year. Microsoft will replace Internet explorer with Microsoft Edge, which is the company’s new browser relying on chromium open-source software that was developed by Google for Google Chrome. That means that Microsoft Edge will definitely have more features compared to…

Netflix is adding a shuffle play button to its home screen for a new watching experience. The company has confirmed that it is putting the button beneath your user profile icon and when clicked, the app will randomly select and play content it thinks you like. The selection could be something you are watching or one with a similar genre or theme with what you are watching or have already watched. The new “shuffle play” button is already available on the Netflix app for most TV device users. The new addition has attracted mixed reactions from users with some people…

Shiv Arora has been appointed Superior Homes Kenya Chief Executive Officer (CEO) effective from August 2020. Prior to his appointment as a CEO, Arora was the Cytonn Investments Chief Operations Officer. Previously, Arora has worked in Investment Banking, Global Wealth Management and Fund Management, gained with Citibank, Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, and Britam Asset Managers. “Shiv Arora has left Cytonn as COO of the group and joined Superior Homes Kenya, which is an affiliate of Cytonn Investments. Cytonn Investments is the second largest shareholder of Superior Homes Kenya,” confirmed Cytonn CEO Edwin Dande. Cytonn Investments acquired a 12.5 percent stake in Superior Homes in…

Instagram has introduced QR codes on the app. Users can now generate their own QR codes which can be scanned by any third party supporting camera apps. The product was first launched in Japan last year and is now available globally. QR codes are designed to allow businesses share or print them out to allow customers scan and access their Instagram accounts easily. People can then view their posts, opening and closing hours, buy items and also follow the account. To generate your QR code, go to your profile settings, click on ‘QR Code’ from the drop-down menu. You can…

The Kenya Nuclear Electricity Board (KNEB) has revealed that the country is building a $5 billion (Ksh540 billion) nuclear power plant in Tana River County. This was revealed through filings with the National Environment Management Authority (Nema), showing that the plant can generate 1,000 megawatt (Mw) of power in the initial stages. The project will be funded through private investors under a Build Operate Transfer (BOT) agreement, according to KNEB. “The financing aspect of the Nuclear Power Plant is among the plans underway with a Build Operate Transfer (BOT) being the most preferred financing agreement with the concessionaire that shall come…

Google Meet has been undergoing a series of developments in the last few months. Meet now comes with Chromecast support to enable video conferencing on your TV screen. With this new development, you can now cast your meetings to the Chromecast streaming sticks, Android TV and Smart TVs. “Earlier this year, we launched Google Meet on Nest Hub Max, and it just felt right to expand Meet to even more screens in your home,” Google’s Grace Yang wrote on the Chromecast support forum. “We recognize that many schools are moving to distance/remote learning, and we wanted to support this new…