Author: NLM Correspondent

By David Onjili Boeing and Airbus continue to enjoy an enviable duopoly in the aviation market. There are other players like Embraer and Bombardier but their market share is that – small. This, however, may soon change with China and Russia coming together to bring forth the CRAIC CR929 formerly known as the Comac C929. During the Beijing International Aviation Expo in Beijing in mid-September, the proposed model was displayed for guests to view. The joint venture between the Chinese Comac and Russian United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) seeks to roll out the long-range 250-320 seater wide-body twin-jet plane. Richard Aboulafia,…

The uptake of digital lending has been on the rise across Kenya, boosted by growing smartphone adoption and the availability of mobile money transfer systems like M-Pesa. With quick application turnaround, digital credit has helped borrowers pay for basic necessities like food and rent and access working capital for their enterprises. Yet increasingly, digital lending in Kenya—and across East Africa—has come under scrutiny, criticised as a “catastrophic” industry that’s pushing tens of thousands of users into debt, while commodifying their data and gaining profits from their woes. The latest challenge comes from Google, which has updated its app store developer policies to…

The biggest task ahead for the continent is the probability that many African economies will be incapable of supporting and enabling enough businesses to employ the burgeoning numbers of youth. It’s a challenge likely to be so huge, countries across Europe are worried about it because governments believe their borders will be even more overwhelmed by young, desperate Africans taking life-threatening journeys to flee their countries and reach a perceived promised land. If you combine the long-running economic inadequacies of many African countries with the youth bulge, and then take into account the likelihood of a disproportionate negative impact of climate change on the…

Overall, Africa’s economic performance is expected to improve this year and next. The World Bank predicts the continent will grow by 2.8 percent in 2019, from an estimated 2.3 percent in 2018 despite some countries continuing to face challenges with infrastructure and financial systems, for example and global headwinds, which may be slowing overall growth, according to The World Bank. There is also some uncertainty in the economic outlook for Africa, thanks in part to global headwinds. Overall, Africa’s economic performance is expected to improve this year and next, with the World Bank predicting the continent growing by 2.8 percent…

By Tahiru Azaaviele Liedong Some time back, a video in which a street boy blamed bad leadership for Nigeria’s socio-economic problems, went viral on social media in the country. He called for a mass burial of the country’s political elite, which in his opinion, would help combat corruption and unlock the country’s potential. His view echoes the inner and hidden sentiments many people living in African countries have about their leaders. The reasons for this are not hard to find. Most African leaders have done little to improve the welfare of their people, who are very poor, while they, and…

By Kevin Motaroki When President Uhuru Kenyatta formally leaves office as Kenya’s chief executive in 2022, his overdue but, inevitably, less-than-gracious exit will be a fitting opportunity to reach for the celebrated words of US President Gerald Ford who, in 1974, declared, after Richard Nixon’s resignation, “…our long national nightmare is over.” Although it is unlikely that Kenyans will express any such optimism, these words, nevertheless, will capture then as they do now the widespread sense of disgust in Kenya at the malignant nature of the UhuRuto presidency. The President has so far chosen his wars haltingly, careful not to…

The speed limit is 110 km per hour on the new highway that Abadalla Chande uses to haul his truckload of animal feed from Tanzania to Kenya, two nations that share a common market often hailed as a model for the continent. But Chande is parked on the tarmac, caught up in a snarl of red tape. He is in a long line of trucks waiting for cargo to be scanned or for documents to be checked by officials. Kenya and Tanzania are the two largest economies in the East African Community (EAC) common market. It was set up in…

By Shadrack Muyesu Early this year, the ministry of Agriculture released the now infamous Dairy Industry (Licensing) Regulations of 2018. Inter alia, the Regulations proposed to criminalise the selling, offer for sale or exposure for consumption of any milk in its raw form without a license issued by the Board. The Regulations further proposed to prevent producers from buying or selling raw milk unless they did so in bulk, through organised groups of farmers including cooperatives and registered companies authorised by the Board or under contractual agreements with processors. In essence, they were aimed at kicking the small retailers out…

By Daniel Mutegi Giti We have experienced uncertainty in the last several months as counties threatened to shut down operations to protest what they said was a skewed revenue-sharing formula. If for nothing, lessons were learnt. As a result, we need to adopt ways for our devolved units to both develop much-needed infrastructure, and to mobilise extra resources for other services. One of the best methods is increasing the role of private sector, with one such method being Public Private Partnerships (PPPs). PPPs imply a variety of arrangements to facilitate participation of the private sector in development. It operates on…

By Kevin Motaroki During five weeks between mid-June through July 2014, armed gunmen who in most cases claimed to be part of the Somalia-based armed Islamist group Al-Shabaab, attacked a passenger bus and at least eight villages in the Kenyan coastal counties of Lamu and Tana River. The attackers killed 87 people, including four security officers, and destroyed approximately 30 buildings and 50 vehicles. Kenyan security forces were slow to respond to the attacks, leaving villages unprotected; when they eventually responded, their actions were often discriminatory, beating, arbitrarily detaining and stealing personal property from Muslim and ethnic Somalis in the…