Author: Francis Muli

Safaricom and NCBA Bank have announced that all M-Shwari late payment sanctions including rollover fees will be deferred by 30 days. Also, all CRB listing of M-Shwari customers who have defaulted their loans will be suspended for the next 90 days. This comes few days after the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) announced measures to protect borrowers during this period of Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. In one the measures announced by CBK governor Dr Patrick Njoroge, banks will review requests from borrowers for extension of their loan for a period of up to one year. Read: Cytonn Ranks KCB As The…

Technology is keeping cities afloat in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic. Since the outbreak of the covid-19 Virus in China in November 2019, many countries have been forced to effect lockdowns and minimal travel to curb the spread. Currently, the number of people affected is at 468,644 while 21,191 have been reported dead. Airports were shut down as airlines suspended travel between countries. The COVID-19 illness, which is highly contagious, has affected almost every aspect of our lives. In all these, technology has provided the best fall back plan in keeping things somewhat normal. Read: How M-pesa and Other…

Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) cyber intelligence team detected at least 37.1 million cases of cyber threats in the period between between October and December 2019. This was a 47.3 percent increase from the previous quarter, where organisations in Kenya were hit by at least 25.2 million cases. The attacks entailed cases of malware, web application attacks, system misconfiguration and online abuse. “During the period between October and December 2019, the National Kenya Computer Incident Response Team/Coordination Centre detected 37.1 million cyber threat events as compared to 25.2 million cyber threat events detected in the period July — September 2019,”…

The world wide web is undoubtedly one of the most important tools during this period of social distancing. As we grapple with the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, we are still able to find information fast, communicate on social media as well as get entertainment thanks to the availability of the internet. Safaricom has doubled their internet speed during this period as more companies are encouraging their employees to work from home. Skype, video conferencing, virtual meetings and online integration of operations are just some of the tools that we are applying to stay in business. The internet also provides a world…

President Uhuru Kenyatta has proposed a voluntary reduction of salaries for senior government officials in a bid to fight the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. In a raft of measures, President Uhuru Kenyatta proposes that his salary and that of his deputy be reduced by 80 percent, while that of Cabinet Secretaries (CSs) and Chief Administrative Secretaries (CASs) be reduced by 30 percent. Upon agreement, the salary of permanent secretaries will be reduced by 20 percent. “I call on the other arms of Government and tiers of Government to join us in this national endeavour, by making similar voluntary reductions; which will…

Garsen MP Ali Wario Ashaka could be arrested for refusing to be screened for coronavirus (Covid-19) at the border of Tana River and Kilifi counties. According to media reports, the MP was travelling from Mombasa with his family, and forced his way through a barrier at Kanagoni that was being manned by police and county officials. Tana River Health CEC Javan Bonaya said the legislator refused to be screened, terming the exercise as annoying. “Our field officers tried to speak to him about the screening but he refused and threatened to interfere with the entire exercise if he was not…

Twitter users will be required to remove tweets that could fuel the spread of the novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) through misinformation on its social network. Tweets that go against the local and global health guidelines will be barred in a new move that has already been effected. Tweets that encourage false treatment, harmful and ineffective alternatives will also be barred. Some of the examples provided by Twitter are those including statements such as ‘social distancing is not effective’ and ‘if you can hold your breath for 10 seconds, you do not have Coronavirus’. Read: Why President Uhuru’s Twitter Username Is Back…

Nairobi Hospital has implemented the one patient, one visitor policy, in a bid to curb the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic in the country. In a public notice, the Hospital Management also barred children below the age of 12 from accessing the facility unless they are sick. “Our new visiting hours are 4:00pm to 6:00pm only. Only one (1) visitor allowed per patient in all our wards. This restriction includes our critical care areas, accident and emergency department, intensive care unit and high dependency unit. Children below the age of twelve (12) years are not allowed in the hospital…

Kenya is seeking a Ksh115 billion loan from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in a bid to bail out the ailing economy from the effects of Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) governor Dr Patrick Njoroge announced the move on Tuesday, saying that the government had appealed to Bretton Woods institutions for the rescue package, in the form of budget support. The government is expecting the first batch of Ksh5 billion by the end of April, which will go directly to the Ministry of Health. “The request has already been sent in and so…

In a pandemic that threatens the whole world such as the Coronavirus (Covid-19), every applicable solution is utilised to keep most people, if not all, safe. For Covid-19, keeping distance and avoiding contact are some of the ways the spread of the virus can be stopped, which has infected over 423,000 people globally and claimed the lives of over 19,000 people. In Kenya, one of the best ways to avoid contact is through cashless transactions, which is available through card payments and mobile money such as M-Pesa, Airtel Money and Telkom Money. Very few people use cards to pay for…

A lockdown is inevitable if we have to we shall win the fight against Coronavirus (Covid-19), City Pastor Godfrey Migwi has told the government. In a message posted on his Facebook timeline, Migwi terms a lockdown as the bitter pill that will see covid-19 pandemic defeated. However, the vocal clergy says that before a lockdown, the government should force all civil servants to take a pay cut and also prepare to distribute food to poor families. Read: Coronavirus: A Consignment Of Masks, Testing Kits and Protective Suits Donated By Chinese Billionaire Jack Ma Arrive In Kenya The President needs to…

The Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) has denied reports that at least six million Covid-19 face masks belonging to Germany Army were stolen at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA). The Authority says after investigation, it found that there was no cargo of that nature that has passed through JKIA for the past two weeks. “Our investigation has concluded that there was no cargo of this nature that has passed through JKIA for the last two weeks and no missing cargo has been reported to the authorities,” said KAA in a statement. https://twitter.com/KenyaAirports/status/1242455090952384512 According to media reports, the defence ministry in…

African countries need at least Ksh15 trillion to fight the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, Ethiopian Prime Minister Dr Ahmed Abiy has said. In a statement to the World Bank and the upcoming G-20 extraordinary summit, Ethiopia also proposes that government loans for low income countries should be waived, as well as interests for the loans. “(We ask for )Africa Global COVID-19 Emergency Financing Package – USD 150 Billion (from the) Supplementary Budgetary Support from the World Bank Group (including by recycling undisbursed IDA resources) for health emergency support, to boost foreign exchange reserves and safety nets,” reads the statement in part.…

Dr Christopher Abeid, the director of medical services and research at Nairobi Hospital and Benta Omonge, director nursing services have been sent on compulsory leave. The two have been replaced by Dr Aysha Edwards and Margaret Sirima respectively. This comes just a few months after former CEO Gordon Odundo was fired and the Board of Management ousted as differences in top management escalated. Last week, Tom Simba, head of customer Service and marketing as well as the finance director , procurement, support services, credit Control and a raft of others were also asked to quit. “The hospital is currently going…

The Anti-Counterfeit Authority has warned Kenyans against counterfeit sanitizers and detergents in the market as the country takes preventive measures to stop the spread of COVID-19. The increased demand for these products poses an opportunity for criminals to capitalize on this vulnerability by selling counterfeit detergents and sanitizers. The Executive Director, Anti-Counterfeit Authority Mr Elema Halake said that some unscrupulous persons have taken advantage of this situation to cash in on the Coronavirus pandemic to manufacture and trade in counterfeit sanitizers and detergents. The Authority is currently following some leads on suspected counterfeit sanitizers and detergents. Mr Halake encouraged Kenyans…