Author: Francis Muli

China is launching a new government backed cryptocurrency. This comes after China launched its national blockchain platform, the Blockchain Service Network (BSN). The country seems to be taking the initiative more seriously than ever. China has been known for its strict regulatory systems significantly on Cryptocurrency investments and online dealings. However, since Facebook announced its plans for Libra, a blockchain digital cryptocurrency, governments around the world are still trying to wrap their heads around the idea of having a private company (Facebook) with over 2.3 billion users worldwide operating its own currency. Perhaps to preempt a potential global risk, China…

Kenyans who bought homes from Banda Homes could lose up to Ksh3.9 billion they paid two years ago, after construction of the said homes stalled. Reports by Citizen TV indicate that the houses remain incomplete two years after project started, with the developer, Andrew Kamau, blaming the failure on Covid-19 pandemic. The buyers bought the houses in Oak Park Estate, Rosewood Estate and Pinewood Estate, all along Kenyatta Road off Thika Superhighway. Each paid at least Ksh3.9 million for the 1000 units in the estates. More than two years since the company started the projects, not even a single house…

The NHIF (National Hospital Insurance Fund) has recently introduced self-care platforms in efforts to fight the Covid-19 Pandemic. Members can choose new, confirm existing or change to their preferred outpatient hospitals. The deadline to change outpatient facilities has been extended to May 15, 2020. NHIF is open to all individuals both in the formal and informal sector. It is compulsory for anyone in the formal sector to be a member and voluntary for retirees and those in the informal sector. NHIF works with a number of health facilities in the country to provide outpatient services to its members under the…

The High Court has allowed Kitengela International Schools to operate right opposite the London Distillers in Athi River, Machakos County, raising eyebrows. In a case filed by the Distiller against the school, Erdermann Property Limited,  Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha, Machakos County and the Attorney General, the company argued that allowing the school to be constructed near the distillery was contrary to the Alcoholic Drinks Control Act, No 4 of 2010, section 12. The school is located within Great Wall Gardens Housing Development Phase 1, developed by Erdermann properties. Photos of the two facilities in our possession show that the school…

The government has confirmed 30 new cases of Covid-19 after testing 883 people, bringing the total number of cases to 465. Mombasa has had the biggest number at 19 followed by Nairobi at eight. Bungoma has two new cases while Kitui one. Of the cases, 23 are male while seven are female. The government has also confirmed 15 more recoveries, raising the total of recoveries to 167. Two patients from Mombasa have also succumbed to Covid-19, raising the number to 24. Announcing the updates today, Health CAS Dr Rashid Aman said that the government has moved to mass testing in…

The war against Covid-19 could be greatly affected in Kenya, after a section of researchers at the Kenya Medical Research Institute (Kemri) went on go-slow over unpaid allowances. Researchers at the facility are in the front line in the war against Covid-19 in terms of testing, and this could explain the reduced number of people being tested per day. It is reported that doctors have been receiving their health risk, extraneous and call allowances from the government,  while the non-medical scientists including entomologists, immunologists and parasitologists have been ignored. Read: CS Kagwe Under Fire Over Alleged Role In Demotion Of…

The Jubilee Party paid President Uhuru Kenyatta’s niece Nana Gecaga at least Ksh361 million for supply of branded T-shirts, caps and other merchandise in 2017, leaked documents have indicated. The money was paid to Bora Ubora Limited, a company owned by Nana Gecaga and her brother Jomo Gechaga, President Uhuru Kenyatta’s personal assistant. Another niece to President Kenyatta, Ms Selina Renee Pratt was also roped in, as the person who was demanding payments from the party. E-mail conversations quoted by the Nation show that the three in several instances demanded pay, even without documentation of the deliveries. Read: MPs Want…

Keroche Breweries founder and CEO Tabitha Karanja has lost her daughter Tecra Muigai in an accident. Tabitha is married to Joseph Karanja and together, they have four children; James Karanja (who serves as the Chairman of Keroche Breweries Limited), Anerlisa Muigai, Edward Muigai and Tecra Muigai. Tecra is the second last born among the four, and has always maintained a low profile, unlike the eldest daughter Anerlisa, who has been in the media limelight. Until her death she worked as the Strategy and Innovation Director at Keroche Breweries. In a statement Keroche Breweries said that Tetra’s brilliance, passion and energy were…

Last week, the Kenya sent over 300 bouquets of flowers to London, United Kingdom to show solidarity with medics fighting Covid-19 in the country, where more than 20,000 people have died. The move did not augur well with Kenyans, who felt that the country was ignoring the welfare of local health practitioners while trying hard to impress colonial masters.. Defending the move yesterday, visibly angry President Kenyatta said that he was aiming at capturing the flower market in England for Kenyans. “I was amazed when some people said I made a mistake by sending those flowers abroad.  Those flowers employ thousands…

In an effort to increase tax revenues, the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) planned to target mobile money transactions from October 2018. This would allow them to track taxpayers transactions and match them up with their tax remission data. The plan was to go through data from at least 28.9 million active mobile customers as well as data from other financial institutions such as banks and data associated with key accounts such as school fees payments and real estate developments. This would help KRA nab the tax evaders and ensure that everyone paid their required tax amounts. KRA saw this as…

The Coronavirus pandemic has many employees working from home. However, what happens when you need to scan a document? There are many third party scanner apps you can get from the app stores. But before you start downloading and trying out the apps, did you know that your iPhone has an inbuilt scanner? When the IOS 11 was released in 2017, Apple rolled out a scanner found in the notes app. Most people are actually not aware that the scanner has been in their iPhone for years. Now that you are aware, here is how to use your iPhone scanner…

At least 500,000 employees could lose their jobs in the next six months if the Covid-19 pandemic situation in the country persists, President Uhuru Kenyatta has said. Speaking during this year’s Labour day celebrations, President Kenyatta indicated that the situation had taken a toll on the economy, crippling several companies that provide employment to thousands of Kenyans. “The hardest hit in our economy are the workers. We can’t relax in our efforts to conquer this invincible enemy and we need to put our economy on a strong growth path. If not, we could lose upwards of half a million jobs…

Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe has promised to sanitize the Ministry of Health, after reports of extravagance surfaced. In a Facebook post, the CS avoided answering questions about the extravagant budget, where Ksh4 million was spent on tea and snacks, Ksh6.5 million to procure stationery, but promised to sack “those responsible”. Ksh10.1 million had been allocated for tea and snacks. “Suffice it to say, there will be no theft of COVID-19 resources under my watch and if there is any truth regarding the misuse of COVID-19 funds, beyond being disheartened, I guarantee you that those responsible will be out of…

Google announced the third round of their Google Africa Developer Scholarships with an aim of creating skills and economic opportunities in Africa. In partnership with Pluralsight and Andela, this is part of their 5 year engagement plan to help bridge the developer skills and opportunities gap in Africa. Google plans to provide 100,000 African developers with access to high quality, world class training on mobile technologies and cloud platforms within a five year period. Google announced 30,000 training scholarship opportunities and an additional 1,000 grants for the Google Associate Android Developer and Associate Cloud Engineer Certifications. Pluralsight and Andela will…

President Uhuru Kenyatta has promoted Lt General Robert Kibochi to a General, and consequently appointed him the Chief of Defence Forces effective May 11, 2020, to replace General Samson Mwathethe who will be going to retirement. In a raft of changes announced today, President Kenyatta also promoted Major General Levi Mghalu to a Lt. General and Brigadier Jimson Mutai to Major General. Lt. Gen. Levi Mghalu has been appointed as Vice Chief of Defence Forces and Maj. Gen. Jimson Mutai appointed Commander of the Kenya Navy, both to assume their positions on May 11. Mwathethe was appointed to the position…