Good morning,
Days like today are the best days (Public holidays on Mondays)
That’s not the only good news! Starting today, all fully vaccinated Kenyans travelling to the UK will not have to undertake quarantine or take a Covid-19 test before departure.
You’ll only need to book a test before arrival and enter your Covid-19 test booking reference number on the passenger locator form.
Pandora papers leak : Where Kenya’s first family stash their cash
The only story that got more hype than Squid Game was the Pandora papers leak by Africa Uncensored which features our President and the first family. The ‘pandora papers’ are 12 million files that were leaked by ICIJ which reveal how the 1% use offshore accounts to conceal assets and money.
Details on the first family
Mr Kenyatta and 6 members of his family have been linked to 13 offshore companies.
Kenyatta's brother, Muhoho, set up a Panamanian entity called Criselle Foundation in 2003 and owns a company with $30m valuation in stocks and bonds.
A foundation called Varies was set up in 2003 in Panama, naming Mr Kenyatta's mother as the first benefactor - and Kenya's president as the 2nd benefactor, (to inherit it after her death).
Note : The papers do not link the Kenyatta’s wealth to corruption. Also, setting up offshore companies is completely legal.
Who else is involved ?
35 other world leaders were linked to concealing assets abroad. This includes Gabon’s President Ali Bongo Ondimba; President of Congo-Brazzaville, Denis Sassou-Nguesso, King Abdullah II of Jordan, and former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair.
Looking forward: President Kenyatta responded to the leak by stating that he would respond comprehensively to the leak once he returned from a state visit abroad.
CAPITAL MARKETS
1. Cytonn places funds under voluntary administration
Via a press release, Cytonn announced that their 2 controversial funds; The Cytonn High Yield Solutions (CHYS) and Cytonn Project Notes (CPN), have been placed under court appointed administration.
Backstory:
Cytonn has been unable to meet repayments for its investors in the two funds. Cytonn attributes the illiquidity of its assets to Covid-19 and its effects on the real estate market in Kenya.
(The asset value of the funds is approximately Ksh 12 billion)
Why voluntary administration:
The move by Cytonn appears to be a counter-reaction to a planned class suit by investors to dissolve the company.
By placing the funds under administration, the Investors are prevented from instituting an action in court to dissolve the company.
This also protects Cytonn from auctions & attachments to its assets.
2. MTN Uganda to sell a fifth of its stake
MTN Uganda announced plans to sell a fifth of its stake to East African investors when it floats its initial public offer (IPO) on the Kampala stock exchange.
details of the sale:
The company has received regulatory approvals to list 20 percent of its shareholding.
The details of the offer will be revealed via prospectus on 11 October.
The sale is restricted to East African buyers and 20% will be sold to the public.
TECHNOLOGY
Facebook’s 6 hour outage cost its CEO $6 billion
Earlier last week, Facebook owned platforms (Facebook, WhatsApp & Instagram) disappeared from the internet for about 6 hours.
The 6 hour outage had a massive impact apart for Facebook and Businesses that rely on its platforms for operations.
Extent of the impact
Facebook shares dropped by approximately 4.5% as a result of the outage.
More than $13 million of advertising revenue was lost each hour.
Mark Zuckerberg’s lost approximately $5.9 billion from his net worth.
With about 2.8 billion people using the apps for business and communication, the effect of the outage to businesses is still unknown but is likely astronomical.
Looking ahead: The outage revealed just how much Facebook, WhatsApp and instagram are embedded into people’s social ecosystem. This strengthens the argument that Facebook’s dominance in the modern communications market should be scrutinised and regulated.
That’s not the only thing Zuckerberg should be worried about:
24 hours before the outage, former Facebook product manager leaked documents to the Wall Street journal to support her statement that Facebook was prioritising monetisation and profits over user safety.
Frances Haugen reveals in an interview that Facebook has misinformed the public by exaggerating the progress made on tackling violence, hate and misinformation on its platforms.
She stated that Facebook’s algorithm (used after the 2020 US elections) contributed to the riot at the Capitol.
HEALTH
Go ahead given for malaria vaccine
The World Health Organisation endorsed a malaria vaccine (RTS,S,) which is not only the first vaccine for malaria but also the first for any parasitic disease.
RTS,S, had an efficacy of 50% against severe malaria in the first year according to data from clinical trials. Although the percentage falls close to zero by the 4th year, WHO (World Health Organization) is still positive that the vaccine will have a huge impact in saving lives across subsaharan Africa.
more details
The vaccine will be administered in 3 doses between ages 17months - 5years and a 4th dose administered eighteen months later.
A number of countries have adopted the vaccine including Kenya.
EMPLOYMENT
Should Engineers and Accountants set minimum fees for their services?
Kenya’s Treasury is reviewing a proposal by accountants who wish to set minimum fees for their services. The proposal claims that this will improve the quality of services offered to the public.
Engineers have also published a notice proposing new rules to set minimum charges and prevent undercutting in the professional body.
The Competition Authority of Kenya is against the proposal and states that setting minimum fees amounts to price fixing which will stifle competition and innovation in these fields.
Backstory: The Competition Authority had rejected a similar proposal by accountants in 2016 where it stated that the claimed benefits of a minimum fee did not outweigh its negative effect on competition.
ENERGY
Households to Benefit from Off-Grid Solar project
The 2nd phase of the Kenya Off-Grid Solar Access Project, a Ksh 4.7 billion programme, will provide thousands of houses with solar and clean cooking solutions.
Isiolo, Samburu, Kwale, Taita Taveta, West Pokot and Marsabit arę set to benefit from the project
details of the project
The project will launch next month.
The World Bank finances the project.
Ksh 553.5 million is allocated to clean cooking, Ksh 2.3 billion to solar energy, Ksh 3.3 billion to solar debt facility.
MUST KNOW
Civil servants’ salaries to be capped: - The Salaries and Remuneration commission announced that allowances for public servants will be capped at 40% of their gross monthly pay starting July next year.
Why Fuel prices are so high - A report by The National Assembly’s Finance Committee revealed that the funds reserved for fuel subsidy (approximately 18 billion) had even diverted and disbursed to the Transport and Infrastructure ministry to pay for the SGR costs.
Kenya Power Lighting Company (KPLC) to undergo fresh audit - A ministerial team has been formed to audit KPLC. This is after the presidential directive to have electricity costs down by 33% before December. Members of the ministerial team include: the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, the Central Bank's Financial Reporting Centre, and the Assets Recovery Agency.
Right to a clean environment - The U.N. Human Rights Council has recognised the access to a clean and healthy environment as a fundamental human right.
Centum closes its services unit - Centum announced that its shared services division will be shut-down inorder to save costs. The Centum CEO explained that its subsidiaries are now fully autonomous hence the decision.
Public Debt situation in Kenya - Treasury revealed to parliament that it had approved loans worth Sh293.5 billion in just 7 months. As a result, the auditor general is set to launch a comprehensive audit of Kenya’s public debt.
Global minimum tax - Kenya is among 4 countries that are yet to join the agreement to have a global minimum tax of 15%. 136 Countries have agreed to the 15% minimum tax.
(Pakistan, Nigeria, Sri Lanka are among the 4 countries yet to join)
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