Cabinet established a Standing Cabinet Committee on Artificial Intelligence to steer Kenya’s national AI strategy, coordinate policy across Government and position the country as a regional leader in the responsible development and adoption of artificial intelligence. The committee will advance AI-driven innovation, productivity, public service delivery, job creation and inclusive economic growth while putting in place appropriate governance and safeguards. Complementing Kenya’s digital transformation agenda, Cabinet adopted the National Business Process Outsourcing Policy to position Kenya as a leading global outsourcing destination, create thousands of quality jobs for young people, attract international investment and expand digital employment opportunities. The policy…
Author: Oki Bin Oki
Cabinet endorsed petroleum cooperation agreements with Rwanda and South Sudan, marking a major vote of confidence in Kenya’s Government-to-Government fuel import framework. The agreements will enable both countries to import bulk refined petroleum products through Kenya’s infrastructure, increasing fuel transit through the Port of Mombasa, the Kenya Pipeline Company network and the Northern Corridor, boosting regional energy integration and generating additional revenues from transport,storage and logistics services. In healthcare, Cabinet endorsed the Kenya-United States Health Cooperation Framework to sustain collaboration in combating HIV, malaria, TB and emerging infectious diseases while strengthening Kenya’s transition to a more self-reliant health system. The…
The High Court has ordered President William Ruto to reconstitute Kenya’s Cabinet within 120 days after finding that its composition violates the Constitution’s two-thirds gender rule. In a judgment delivered on Tuesday, a three-judge bench directed the President to ensure all Cabinet appointments comply with Article 27(8) of the Constitution, which requires that no more than two-thirds of members of an appointive body be of the same gender. Justice Eric Ogola, delivering the ruling on behalf of the bench, ordered the appointing authority to make Cabinet appointments that conform with the constitutional gender principle within 120 days. The judges found…
The Supreme Court announced Tuesday that it will decide whether cities and states may ban people from owning AR-15 rifles and similar semi-automatic weapons, taking up a major Second Amendment dispute that it had previously declined to address. One of the appeals involving certain semi-automatic rifles came from two Illinois residents who want to purchase AR-15 style rifles but are blocked from doing so by an ordinance in Cook County that makes it unlawful to sell or possess any “assault weapon or large capacity magazine,” specifically listing dozens of models that were off limits. Ten states have similar bans in…
The British government said on Tuesday that it is likely to challenge Paramount Skydance’s takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, potentially complicating the finalization of the $110 billion merger. The British culture minister Lisa Nandy said in a statement that she was “minded to intervene” in Paramount’s quest to acquire CNN, HBO, the Warner Bros. movie studio and other Warner Bros. Discovery assets, citing concerns about its potential impact on media diversity. “Following engagement with the parties and independent research, my Department has today written to the current and proposed owners of Warner Bros Discovery on my behalf to inform them…
The Supreme Court on Tuesday lifted a Watergate-era cap on how much money political parties may spend in coordination with candidates, siding with Republicans in a case initially filed by then-Senate candidate JD Vance that experts say could ultimately benefit the GOP in this year’s midterm election. Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the opinion for a 6-3 conservative-liberal court. In the opinion, Kavanaugh wrote that keeping limits in place could “help consign political parties to continued second-tier status as compared to outside groups.” “Weakened political parties distort the political system,” he added. The dissent of the court’s liberals, written by Justice Elena…
The US Supreme Court has ruled that states can ban transgender women from competing in female school and college sports. The court considered cases from students in two different states who had challenged bans on participation. The two states, Idaho and West Virginia, enacted laws that required public school and college sports teams to compete in accordance with their sex recorded at birth. One of the two challenges says the ban violates equal rights protections in the US Constitution. The other says it contradicts civil rights laws. More than two dozen states have enacted bans since Idaho did so in…
Senegal’s lawmakers have passed a controversial constitutional reform that expands their powers while curbing those of the president, triggering protests outside parliament. The reforms were passed by an overwhelming majority after heated exchanges in parliament, underscoring an escalating power struggle between President Bassirou Diomaye Faye and his former ally-turned-rival, parliamentary Speaker Ousmane Sonko. The government said the reforms would be put to a national referendum, although no date has been announced. Faye and Sonko came to power together in 2024 on the promise of sweeping reforms, but their alliance has recently fractured, fuelling political uncertainty in the country. Relations between…
Thousands of people have marched in South Africa’s main cities to demand that all undocumented migrants leave the country. Police officers – backed by private security guards – have been deployed because of fears that protests could turn violent. Anti-migrant groups had set Tuesday as the deadline for undocumented migrants to leave. Many foreigners have already fled to escape violence and intimidation. South African police say 25,000 have been repatriated so far. Most are from other African countries. One undocumented Malawian told the BBC he was “happy to be going back” but “heartbroken” to be leaving behind four young children.…
People granted asylum in the UK face having to pay back around £10,000 towards the cost of their accommodation and support once they start earning, under government plans. The new measures, which are part of the Immigration and Asylum Bill, are aimed at recovering costs from all adults with sufficient funds. Asylum seekers who have the right to work in the UK will have to pay the flat-rate fee before they are eligible to settle permanently. Those whose claims have been rejected and leave the country will have to repay the costs before they can return to the UK. Home…
A manhunt is under way in southern France after a parcel bomb exploded at a residential building in neighbouring Monaco, severely injuring a wealthy Ukrainian businessman. Vadym Yermolaiev, his wife and their 13-year-old son were all injured in the attack, French media report, and are being treated at a hospital in Nice. Yermolaiev and his partner are in critical condition, they say. The blast occurred shortly before 21:00 local time (19:00 GMT) at an apartment building on Rue Révérend Père Louis Frolla, near the border with France. Monaco’s government said the explosion was caused by a parcel bomb. Minister of…
Ford says it has hired back some human engineers after AI failed to match their skills and experience. In a bid to reap the benefits of the tech, which developers claim can cut costs and boost productivity, the US carmaker adopted it across some parts of its operations including for quality checks. But, according to Bloomberg, its executives said the firm has rehired more than 300 “veteran” quality inspectors in recent years to make up for the pitfalls of automated systems. “Artificial intelligence is a fantastic tool, but it’s only as good as the information you use to train it,”…
The US Supreme Court has blocked President Donald Trump’s attempt to fire a governor of the US central bank, in a ruling seen as affirming the Federal Reserve’s independence. In a 5-4 decision, justices from the country’s top court said the administration had not provided Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook sufficient “due process” for her to contest her removal. The decision sends the matter back to lower courts, where the administration will have to prove its allegations that Cook has committed mortgage fraud if it wishes to proceed with the firing and where Cook would have a chance to challenge…
Mass gatherings have been banned in the Democratic Republic of Congo capital, Kinshasa, as well as three other areas, in order to halt the spread of Ebola, the interior minister says. The current outbreak of the deadly disease has so far been detected in three provinces in the east – some 1,800 km (1,100) miles from Kinshasa – but the authorities fear it spreading to the city of 18 million people. The three other provinces affected by the ban – Tshopo, Haut-Uele and Bas-Uele -border those where Ebola has been confirmed. Prominent figures from DR Congo’s opposition parties have criticised…
The US Supreme Court will not hear an appeal requested by President Donald Trump to review the civil case that found he defamed and sexually abused writer E Jean Carroll. A New York jury awarded Carroll $5m (£3.6m) in damages in 2023 over her civil claim that Trump sexually assaulted her in the 1990s, and then branded the incident a hoax on social media. Trump denied the allegations and repeatedly claimed that the judge who oversaw the civil trial improperly allowed evidence to be presented that affected how the jury viewed him. A federal appeals court agreed with the jury’s…