Good Morning.
The National Drought Management Authority (NDMA) and Kenya Red Cross Society (KRCS) statistics show that more than 3.5 million Kenyans are facing starvation due to acute food shortages caused by drought-induced crop failure.
Several counties in the Northern Kenya region hard hit by drought are to benefit from funds to be coordinated by NDMA to reduce the impact of malnutrition among children.
Tech Talent war
Global tech giants have been increasing investment on the continent in recent years to take advantage of growing economies with rising access rates to the Internet by a youthful population.
Local companies have struggled to recruit and retain talent because tech titans like Microsoft, Amazon & Google tilt the market in their favour with high salaries and attractive employment terms.
Just how much are they paying?
Around Ksh 300,000 to junior tech developers, Ksh 500,000 for mid-level techies, and between Ksh 800,000 and Ksh1.3 million for lead and senior roles.
Increasing interest in Africa
In April, Google announced opening its first-ever Africa product development centre in Nairobi as it positions itself to serve the growing base of Internet users on the continent. The company intends to invest $1 billion (Ksh120 billion) in various projects on the continent over five years, its CEO Sundar Pichai said last October.
In 2019, Microsoft opened the engineering hub, the Africa Development Centre (ADC) in Nairobi and promised to fill 500 software engineering roles at the facility and another in Lagos by 2023. In March, Microsoft had grown its full-time employees working at the Nairobi ADC to over 450.
COMMERCE
South Sudan to build a port in Djibouti
South Sudan bought a piece of land in Djibouti for the construction of a harbor. This harbor is intended as an alternative to the port of Mombasa which is facing an onslaught from Dar-es-Salaam.
The Chamber of Commerce in South Sudan stated that it would shift its cargo to the port of Djibouti, which it termed as convenient for it.
South Sudan’s minister for petroleum stated that the land was procured by the Ministry of Petroleum for the purpose of exporting the country’s crude oil as well as using it on imported goods. If effected, the move will negatively affect the port of Mombasa given that Juba is one of Kenya’s largest clients.
Interesting fact: South Sudan imports nearly all its cargo through the Kenyan port.
HIGH COURT
An increase in NSSF contributions was declared unconstitutional
The High Court stopped the proposed increase of monthly contributions to the NSSF and ruled that the law supporting the increments was unconstitutional.
Justices Mathews Nduma, Hellen Wasilwa and Monica Mbaru quashed the NSSF Act of 2013, saying it was not subjected to public participation which is in breach of the Constitution which demands public input before major decisions are taken.
Amendments to The NSSF Act 2013 sought to not only increase monthly contributions by employees but also required employers to match their employees’ contributions.The higher pension contributions are aimed at helping the NSSF build a bigger retirement fund and offer workers monthly stipends after their retirement.
INFRASTRUCTURE
Another Expressway
The Kenyan government plans to build a new 473-km Nairobi-Mombasa Expressway. The government revived plans to build the expressway which will offer an uninterrupted movement of vehicles between the two cities.
The expressway will run side by side with the railway.
Three firms are now competing for a tender to build the 473-km road:
a. Korean Overseas Infrastructure and Development Corporation (KIND);
b. American firm Bechtel Executive which is in partnership with US Capital Investment Company Everstrong Capital.
TRAVEL
Old generation passports to be phased out in December
On Thursday, Immigration Director-General reminded Kenyans that they have until the end of November to replace their old passports.
“Pursuant to the decision by EAC Council of Minister’s held in Arusha from November 22 to 29, 2021, the deadline for phasing out of the old generation passport for EAC Member States is November 2022,” - DG Alexander Muteshi
Kenya started issuing the new East African format e-Passport in September 2017 in line with the digitization of services.
WHAT YOU MUST HAVE MISSED
The National Treasury unveiled a Ksh 3.6 Billion fertilizer subsidy program
71,000 Metric tonnes of fertilizer meant to support 1.4 Million acres of land will be subsidized. Individual farmers are to get a maximum of 100- 50kg bags
KEBS suspends 10 cooking oil brands over health concerns
Edible oil and cooking fat manufacturers Bidco Africa, Pwani Oil, Kapa Oil and Menengai, have been ordered to recall some of their products from the shelves for non-compliance with standards.
The Kenya Bureau of Standard (Kebs) did not indicate the extent to which each of the products had breached standard KS EAS 769: KS 2019 Fortified Edible Oils and Fats-Specification.
The supreme court declared the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) unconstitutional
Following the Supreme Court declaration, Treasury Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yatani announced that CDF would not be disbursed despite several Members of parliament pushing for its disbursement
The supreme court had declared CDF unconstitutional because the kitty offends the division of functions between national and county governments.
Saudi Arabia is the fastest growing source of remittances
Statistics from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) show that Ksh 22.65 billion ($188.79 million) was sent back home by Kenyans living in Saudi Arabia in the first eight months of 2022.
This ranks the Gulf nation as the third-largest source of remittances for Kenya behind the United Kingdom (ksh 25.4 billion) and the United States ( Ksh188.8 billion).
These statistics show that there is increasing migration of jobless Kenyan workers despite cases of abuse and cruel treatment of foreign domestic workers in the Middle East nation. Saudi Arabia relies on millions of low-paid foreign workers such as housemaids, care-givers, nannies, drivers and security guards, who send money to their families back home every year.