Author: KahawaTungu Reporter

First Assurance Company has teamed up with taxi firm Uber to provide passengers with insurance coverage should they wind up in an accident or emergency. As a result riders will now be insured for any medical expenses, hospital costs, ambulance emergency along with compensation for injuries and death incurred while riding in the Uber licensed vehicle. According to reports the policy began on the 16th of October and is currently available to all Uber users. Read: Uber’s Operational License In London Will Not Be Renewed “We are excited about this new and innovative insurance policy. The insurance coverage goes hand in…

Nakumatt Holdings Limited have appointed PKF Consulting East Africa partner Peter Kahi as a possible replacement for Nakumatt CEO Atul Shah. This proposal comes just after Nakumatt is reported to have filed for bankruptcy. According to reports, the directors of the retailer chain have requested an administration order from the High Court and the application is scheduled to be heard by Justice Joseph Onguto on November 8th. The retailer is also seeking approval from the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) over the possibility of a merger with Tuskys. Read: Nakumatt Under Fire Over Sh600 Million Outstanding Debts As Nakumatt aims to…

Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) Managing Director Waithaka Waihenya has exited the company following seven years of service. According to reports, Waihenya’s tenure ends October 31 and the MD will not be seeking an extension. He was praised by fellow KBC staff for his ‘oustanding leadership’ which led to the growth of the company. Read: Four Executives Exit Kenya Airways As Company Attempts To Bounce Back “The board of directors, during its meeting held on October 5, 2017, considered the managing director’s request to leave the corporation following the expiry of his contract, and after due consideration approved the MD’s exit from…

The Kenya Revenue Authority(KRA) had announced its plans to recover approximately Sh3.6 billion from cosmetics, non-alcoholic beverages, bottled water, and juices annually. As a result a gazette notice was issued on October 3 stating that all imported products would have to bear the regulator’s stamp. According to reports, the move was made in part to help enhance tax revenue. “Currently, revenue performance in this sector is at less than 40 per cent. The roll-out of EGMS to this sector is aimed at reversing this poor tax compliance,” commissioner for domestic taxes Benson Korongo said. Read: KRA Collects 10 Billion Rent Income Tax…

The government of Nairobi is seeking to hire 1,000 new staff member to help boost the security and disaster management sector. The 1,000 staff members would consist of 800 inspectorate officers and 200 firefighters. According to a memo issued by County Secretary Leboo Morintat, the last time the county recruited staff was almost 20 years ago. “The County’s Security, Compliance and Disaster Management Sector has been experiencing challenges in executing its core mandate of security, enforcement, compliance and disaster management due to shortage of staff. An analysis of the sector staff indicates that the last recruitment was done in the year…

Nakumatt Supermarket is in the hot seat once again after several of its land owners have moved forward to with their plans to evict the retailer chain and terminate its lease(s). According to reports, 19 land owners have filed a petition in court demanding that Nakumatt settle rent arrears. The group of land lords come from Nairobi, Kericho, Kakamega and Nakuru. Despite reports of a possible buyout by Tuskys supermarkets several mall owners have shown lack of confidence in the retailer and as a result have pushed forward with their demands. The owners have also expressed interest in replacing the…

WhatsApp instant messaging service has rolled out a new feature which many of its users have been eagerly awaiting. Users will now be able to unsend messages sent to a group or individual within seven minutes of sending the message. Those interested in deleting a message after sending will now be given an option called “delete for everyone”. This options removes the message from the sender and receivers phone. The message will then be replaced by another message that says “This message has been deleted.” Read: Kenya Airways Launches MTN Mobile Money Payment Option for Clients in Uganda “Deleting messages…

Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) has received approval from the African Development Bank (AfDB) for a Sh10 billion line of credit. According to reports, the AfDB Board of Directors approved the Sh10 billion which is set to go towards lending to small businesses and youth. The move comes as KCB looks to grow its loan book following the cut down on law capping interest rates. “The funding is aimed at supporting KCB’s lending operations in Kenya especially to corporate businesses, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) as well as projects that are critical to the development of Kenya’s economy,” said AFDB in…

Kenyans are set to benefit more from the Madaraka Express following an announcement that the train will be offering inter-county services starting November 1. According to Kenya Railways (KR), the train will make stops between Mombasa and Nairobi while also offering express services from 3:30 pm. “Yes it is true we have plans to start these operations to cater for more passengers who want a more flexible timeline when travelling between the two cities,” said Transport Secretary James Macharia. The train will make stops at stations in  Athi River, Emali, Kibwezi, Mtito Andei, Voi, Miasenyi and Emali. Read: SGR Or Madaraka Express…

With a high level of uncertainty surrounding the presidential election tourists have been told to take all measures to ensure their security. As a result the government of the United Kingdom has warned against traveling west of Kenya during this time which has seen a lot of violence and protests. “Media report that the governors of Kisumu, Siaya, Homa Bay, Kakamega and Migori have said that elections won’t be allowed to take place in their counties on 26 October. This may trigger further protests. You should avoid traveling around these regions on and around days of planned protests including areas…

The long awaited presidential election is finally here and this time round the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) is hoping to fix the mistakes of the August 8 election. The have acquired the assistance of mobile network operators Safaricom, Telkom Kenya and Airtel Kenya to help with the transmission of results. As part of the electoral process the IEBC has equipped result transmission kits with Safaricom SIM cards. This was done in a effort to eliminate mistakes made in the previous election that saw results from polling stations arrive at the national tallying center before scanned copies of Forms 34A…

With the demand for taxi rides across the country, Taxify has introduced an MPESA payment option that will allow their customers to pay directly. Taxify now joins Little on the list of taxi companies that have incorporated the direct MPESA payment. The move was made by the company in an attempt to draw more customers and ease methods of payment. Read: Taxify Unveils Taxify Comfort To Compete With UberSELECT “We are always on the lookout on how to intensely localize the experience of our application across the cities we operate in. We take time to learn what works for each city…

As the country gets set to take part in the re-run of the presidential elections on Thursday, October 26, the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) and the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) have issued a strong statement to social media users. The prolonged electioneering period has left several Kenyans with a degree of uncertainty ahead of the fresh poll. Both the CA and the NCIC released a statement telling Kenyans that they will not condone social media websites that promote and spread hate speech during the election period. “As the 26th October 2017 repeat Presidential election approaches, the attention of…

As Nakumatt continues to sort their current financial situation Tuskys supermarket has stepped up its plans to bail out the retailer chain. A new proposal involving the two retailers could see Tuskys end up with a 51 per cent stake in Nakumatt. “The intention is for Tuskys to take up the majority stake of 51 per cent because that then gives them a measure of control. This preliminary arrangement, once it receives the nod of the regulator will entail, Tuskys taking over management of Nakumatt so that effectively you have good management, you have finances to operate and pay the…

The Government of Kenya has managed to secure a deal with British-based multinational oil and gas exploration company Tullow Oil to construct a crude oil pipeline. The government through the Ministry of Energy has now carried forward their plans to build a pipeline from Lokichar, Turkana to Lamu town. According to reports, the project will be completed over the course of four years and will cost the government around Sh210 billion. Read: Government Introduces Kenya E-Trade Portal To Boost Local, International Trade So far Tullow Oil has discovered 750 million barrels of oil in South Lokichar Basin, Kenya since 2012. “This joint development…