Taxpayers to spend Ksh 126.3 billion more to finance budget
7 February 2022
Good Morning, and Congratulations - we made it through January! With a new month comes an announcement:
A ConversationStarter instagram account has been set up to provide infographics for Breaking news (the type that cannot possibly wait for the Monday email) and highlights of the weekly post.
FOREIGN EXCHANGE RATE (KSH)
Taxpayers to spend Ksh126.3 billion more to finance the budget for financial year 2021/2022
On Tuesday, Treasury presented a supplementary budget to Parliament. The supplementary budget essentially revises the National budget upwards by Sh126.3 billion.
Supplementary Budget allocations
Kshs 26.5 billion has been allocated to the Kenya Airways bailout and other undisclosed expenditures. (Treasury had targeted to offer Kenya Airways Ksh53.4 billion in direct budget support in this fiscal year.)
Kshs 24.9 billion allocated to fuel subsidy.
The funds will be paid to oil marketers so as to keep fuel prices unchanged in the monthly reviews.
Without the subsidy, super petrol would have hit a historic high of Ksh144.47 a litre from the current Sh129.72, Diesel Ksh128.44 a litre from Ksh110.6 and Kerosene ksh123.77 from Ksh103.54 a litre.
Ksh 9.1 billion allocated to the IEBC as an addition to meet budgetary requirements needed to conduct the August 2022 General Election.
Ksh 8.5 billion allocated to the purchase of COVID-19 vaccines and Ksh 1.3 billion for the establishment of a covid-19 vaccine plant.
Ksh 2.7 billion for primary education.
Ksh 5.9 billion for fighting drought.
EDUCATION
More than 75,000 university students to miss out on HELB loans
The Higher Education Loans Board (Helb) told parliament that about 75,000 first-year students were yet to receive funding because the board had ran out of cash.
The lack of funds was attributed to:
Delayed release of cash by the Treasury
The rising defaults from former university students whose employment status was affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
HELB stated that the students who joined university in September will have to wait for funding until Treasury disburses Ksh 3 billion to the board.
TAX
1. KRA warns Kenyans of fraudsters purporting to be Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) employees
The Kenya Revenue Authority issued a notice warning businesses of fraudsters who have been extorting businesses by masquerading as KRA employees.
The taxman urged businesses to confirm the identity of any person purporting to be a KRA employee through:
The KRA website, USSD via *572#, or through the KRA M-Service App
“Kindly note that all KRA staff on duty must always provide identification before entering your premises or transacting on behalf of KRA. If in doubt, call telephone number 0726984668 and report the matter.” - Deputy Commissioner, Marketing and Communication Grace Wandera.
TRAVEL
1. Ethiopian Airlines resumes flight with Boeing 737 Max
On Tuesday, Ethiopian Airlines flew passengers on a Boeing 737 MAX plane for the first time since the crash nearly three years ago.
The demonstration flight had journalists, diplomats & officials on board. It was initially scheduled to land in Kenya but remained within Ethiopia due to poor weather.
“We made sure everything is in order, now we are doing a demo flight so to speak. It is after this that we are availing it to commercial aviation,”- acting Chief Executive Officer Esayas Woldemariam.
Note: Ethiopia is among the last countries to return the Boeing 737 MAX to service2. Qatar airways increases the number of flights to Nairobi
Qatar Airways has increased frequencies of the Doha – Nairobi flights to two flights due to increased demand from travellers.
The Nairobi route is one of the crucial destinations for Qatar airways because it plays a major role in connecting travellers who transit through Doha International Airport.
Qatar Airways is among the major carriers that fly to Kenya from Doha, making it easier for passengers from the US and Europe to connect to Nairobi
HIGH COURT RULING
Imprisonment of mentally ill persons at the President’s pleasure declared unconstitutional
Last week, the High court ruled that the imprisonment of convicts who are guilty but insane at the President’s pleasure is unconstitutional.
The Judge stated that the imprisonment, which occurs after conviction but before sentencing, is a threat to the doctrine of separation of powers and Independence of the Judiciary.
Imprisonment at the Presidents pleasure means that a convict is detained for an indefinite time and the time is dependent on the Office of the President.
As a result, some subsections of the Criminal Procedure Code which allow for the detention of mentally ill criminal suspects in prisons before sentencing have been declared null and void.The judge also declared that the President’s Advisory Committee on the Power of Mercy has no authority to deal with convicts who have mental challenges until they are sentenced by the courts.
Looking forward:
The High court ruled that all prisoners who were detained at the president’s pleasure are to be arraigned again before their respective trial courts for resentencing.
ENERGY
1. Only electric and some hybrid vehicles will be allowed on the Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) corridors
The Housing and Urban Development Principal Secretary stated that Petrol and diesel-powered buses would not be allowed to use the Bus Rapid Transport corridors.
Only electric and some hybrid vehicles (which use a mixture of electric and fossil fuel & those that use biofuels like hydrogen and biogas) will use the BRT corridors.
The BRT corridors are currently undergoing construction on Thika road and Mombasa road.
They are expected to be complete by June of this year.
the BRT is expected to improve Nairobi’s public transport network and reduce cost & travel time by 70%.
2. Companies are moving to solar energy for their operations
Bamburi Cement has joined a growing list of companies who are turning to solar power as a more reliable source of electricity. The company has signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Momnai Energy Limited (an independent power producer) , to set up two solar plants at Bamburi’s factories in Mombasa and Nairobi.
Bamburi is banking on the solar plants to account for 40% of its total power supply
Several companies, universities and factories have turned to solar energy to ensure reliable supply and reduce the operational costs of relying on KPLC (Kenya Power and Lighting Company).
National Cement, Africa Logistics Properties (ALP), Mombasa International Airport, the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (Icipe) have recently commissioned solar power units on their properties.WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED THIS WEEK
The 15% relief on workers NHIF payments came into effect last month - The Kenya Revenue Authority sent out a notice reminding employers that the 15% relief on NHIF payments by employees should be captured in their January payslips.
The Postal Corporation of Kenya threatened to evict Huduma centres from its buildings - Huduma Centres are at risk of closure due to Ksh 1.7 billion rental demands by The postal corporation of Kenya (PCK).
PCK hosts many of the Huduma centres across the country. Some Huduma Centres housed by PCK include Nairobi (GPO), Kakamega, Nakuru, Meru, Mombasa, Machakos, Kisii, Bungoma, Marsabit and Isiolo.
Be cautious when buying land in Mavoko - The Housing Principal Secretary warned the public of individuals
illegally selling propertyin the slum upgrading project in MavokoChama’s and cooperatives have been the target of such individuals.
He stated that the government would not be liable for any losses from illegal home purchases
Didn’t know Kenya Airways transports monkeys ? - Kenya Airways announced that it would stop transporting monkeys from Mauritius to the United States for laboratory experiments.
The move follows protests from animal rights activists’ in the United States after truck ferrying monkeys to a laboratory crushed in Pennsylvania.
Denmark lifted all Covid-19 restrictions within the country - this means No indoor mask mandate, No use of a "Covid pass" for bars, restaurants & other indoor venues and No legal obligation to self-isolate if you test positive.
Start- up focus: Kenyan tech-enabled logistics platform, Amitruck, raised $4 million in seed funding - Amitruck connects shippers with transporters operating trucks, vans, tuk-tuks (three-wheelers), pick-ups and motorbikes.
Investors who took part in the funding round include Better Tomorrow Ventures (BTV), Dynamo Ventures, Rackhouse Venture Capital, Flexport Inc, Knuru Capital, Launch Africa Ventures, Uncovered Fund, and a number of angel investors.
Inflation rate - The Central Bank of Kenya reported that inflation in January dropped to 5.4% compared to December 2021’s 5.7%.