Good morning,
After 18 months, the 4am - 10pm curfew has finally been lifted. This announcement was the highlight of the president's speech during Mashujaa day. However, much more was said.
Mashujaa day speech summary
If you are like me, you were too excited to listen to what else the president had to say. Thankfully, we have a summary of ‘things to note’ from the presidents’ Mashujaa day speech:
There is a temporary prohibition on the listing of non-performing loans of less than Ksh 5 Million with Credit Reference Bureaus(CRBs) for 12 months. (The 12 months end in September 2022)
Any listing on the CRB of defaulters with a loan of less than Ksh 5 Million will not be incorporated into their credit report for 12 months till September 2022. - this applies only if the listing occurred from October 2020 -
A Ksh 25 billion economic stimulus package will be released to jump start the economy and create jobs. The package is expected to widen the market and offer better produce prices for tea, coffee, sugar, livestock farming.
Ksh 8 billion will be released for the construction of schools using local contractors and local labour in order to boost cash flow within the country.
Ksh 1 billion each will be allocated to support tea and coffee farmers.
ECONOMY
KPMG East Africa CEO Outlook Survey
KPMG East Africa released their July/ August 2021 East Africa CEO outlook survey which is basically a report of the views East African CEO’s have on the Economy at the moment.
This is what our CEO’s think:
86% of them are confident about the growth prospects of their countries’ economies. In the 2020 survey, only 32% were confident about the growth of their countries’ economies.
74 % of the CEOs note that supply chain risks remain the major threat for companies in East Africa.
70% of them are confident in their Companies’ preparations for a cyber attack.
88% of them admit to have the urgency to shift investments to digital opportunities.
82% expect they will be involved in an M&A ( Mergers and Acquisitions) transactions over the next three years.
56% state that they will increase investment in disruption detection and innovation processes in various fields.
The CEO’s view their role as increasingly evolving into addressing global challenges, from income inequality to climate change.
LEGAL
Whose mandate is it to Handle Extradition proceedings ?
To completely phrase the question, lets give it some context:
Backstory
In 2011, A court in Jersey, (part of the British Isles) issued a warrant for the arrest of Mr Gichuru (former CEO of Kenya Power Limited) and Mr Okemo ( former cabinet minister). The two are wanted for corruption charges for receiving “commissions” paid by companies to win Kenya Power tenders.
These ‘commissions’ were held in Jersey under foreign currency amounting to Ksh 1.04 billion.
In 2011, extradition proceedings were handled by the office of the DPP which was under the Attorney generals office.
In 2012, the office of the DPP was set up as an independent office from the Attorney General.
The Conflict
The DPP and the Attorney General both claim that the extradition mandate falls within their offices.
The conflict between them on who should handle the extradition process of Mr Okemo and Mr Gichuru is currently under determination by the Supreme court of Kenya.
Attorney General’s Argument: The AG states that the extradition process of the two Kenyans is flawed since the proceedings were instituted without written authority from him.
His main argument is that the mandate to extradite Kenyans does not falls within the DPP’s office because:
a. The extradition proceedings are not as a result of a criminal matter.
b. The case entails unique proceedings that cannot be handled through the DPP’s office on behalf of Kenya.
The DPP’s argument is that the mandate remains within its office even after the office was set up independently from the Attorney General’s office.
BANKING
Sign Language Mobile App
The Kenya Bankers Association has partnered with Financial Sector Deepening Trust (FSD Kenya) and software engineering firm Deaf eLimu Plus to create a Kenyan Sign Language (KSL) self-training mobile Application.
The mobile application will help facilitate Kenyan Sign Language training for bank staff to assist them in communicating better with deaf bank clients.
FIRES
Gikomba Market goes up in Flames again
On Tuesday night, a fire raged through Gikomba market in the Southern area near Muthurwa primary school.
The incident occurred throughout the night to Wednesday morning. The cause of the fire remains unknown and it is estimated that property worth millions was destroyed.
History of the fire
In August this year, a similar incident occurred in Gikomba market and 4 residential flats were burnt down.
Two similar incidents occurred in 2020, and 3 similar incidents occurred in 2019.
Looking forward: The Government has promised to end this perennial problem which is linked to private individuals having interests in developing property in Gikomba market.
Other ConversationStarters
Accidentally shot on stage - Actor, Alec Baldwin shot two of his crew members on the set of his upcoming Movie. Details reveal that a cinematographer, Hayla Hutchins was killed and the director was hospitalised but has now been released.
The incident involved the use of a ‘prop gun’ which ideally should have blanks. However, Police reports state that the “prop gun” had live ammunition when it was fired.
Eliud Kipchoge and Faith Kipyegon nominated for male & female athlete of the year respectively -
Eliud Kipchoge and Faith Kipyegon were nominated for male & female athlete of the year by the World Athletics Award. They are among a list of nominees who were selected by an international panel of athletics experts.
How to vote: You can vote online via the World Athletics social media platforms by liking the picture of the nominee on Instagram and Facebook or Retweeting on twitter.
- Click to vote for Eliud Kipchoge & Faith Kipyegon
Glacier at Mount Kenya to disappear in the next decade - A report by the World Meteorological Organization revealed that the glacier on Mount Kenya, Kilimanjaro in TZ and Rwanzori in UG will disappear in the next 20 years.
The report highlighted that the worldwide changes in the climate resulted in more floods, droughts lasting longer and temperatures steadily rising.
Fresh covid-19 outbreak in China- China has experienced a new surge of Covid-19 infections and this has led to authorities imposing new restrictions to curb the spread of Covid-19. This includes the halting of activities at several airports.
The disruption of flights will likely push import and export prices higher and further strain Kenyan traders who import goods from China.
Cytonn woes continue - According to the CMA (Capital Markets Authority), investors withdrew Sh188.3 million from the Cytonn Unit Trust Scheme. This is the biggest outflow of investments in the quarter that ended in June.
Cytonn recently placed the Cytonn High Yields Solutions LLP and Cytonn Real Estate Project Notes LLP under voluntary administration. ( 2nd Story in the issue below)
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