Author: NLM Correspondent

David Onjili The essence of free speech is that we permit people with whom we differ to speak. Wrongheaded views will be aired. But free speech means no one gets the last word. We can, and indeed we should, use our own right to free speech to challenge expression we think is obnoxious or wrong. To do this, we must be ready to argue in public and also be allowed by the same public to express ourselves, however right or wrong they may feel we are. The truth is, Kenya is a nation where dogma, stereotype, tradition and authority are…

Africa’s under-developed infrastructure, non-tariff barriers and finance constraints will limit the potential benefits of a continental free trade agreement that is due to receive political backing before the end of this month, Moody’s Investors Service said in a report last month. The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which aims to create a single African market for goods and services, could boost intra-regional trade, which remains far lower than in developing Asian countries. “There is significant potential for further trade integration in Africa, which the AfCFTA could stimulate,” said Colin Ellis, Moody’s Managing Director and the co-author of the report.…

With African tech hubs, start-ups and founders starting to mature and gain deeper understanding of local markets after a few years of heady hype that was more about potential than substance, investors increasingly look towards the continent. Partech Ventures’ latest annual funding report shows that venture capital funding in 2017 reached $560 million, recording 53% year on year growth. The scale of growth in funding is seen in the number of investment rounds participated in by start-ups: in 2017, 124 start-ups participated in 128 funding rounds compared to 77 rounds in 2016. Partech’s reports include start-ups that have a primary…

Joshua Malidzo Nyawa Strikes are considered “a right to self-defence” as they are a means of balancing power between the employer and the workers. The right to strike is a bedfellow of the right to bargain collectively. In Industrial relations matters, the workers’ ultimate arsenal in bargaining terms and conditions of service is the right to go on strike while the employer has the right to a lockout. The Strike is not the toy of ambitious Politicians. It is the red rainbow across the sky of industrial desperation. It is a permanent warning to politicians to keep their promises, to…

Joshua Nyabwa Separation of powers is a “vital tool to advance our democratic hygiene”, for it is generally accepted that when all powers are vested in one body, there can be no liberty and liberty can only be found where various powers are vested in different bodies. Since the days of pharaoh in Egypt to today, it is widely accepted that man is in nature selfish and the notion that ‘power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely’, the democratic oxygen will be unhygienic if all these powers were to be vested in an individual. It becomes a pertinent question meriting an…

John Gichuhi Competition between businesses is a main characteristic of a well-balanced market. In simple terms, competition is the supply by more than one person of similar goods in the market. The law requires fairness, competitiveness and effectiveness in all markets. Proper risk analysis for a business demands prioritizing compliance with the law. Business objectives such as profits, sales or market share may not be achieved if a business spends a substantial portion of its income on unnecessary fines levied by regulators such as the Competition Authority of Kenya. The Competition Act No. 12 of 2010 sets out the legal…

Fernados Ombaso Mang’ate “It will take us (judges) three years and eight months to hear and determine cases pending before the High Court even without new matters being filed. Therefore, the judiciary is encouraging adoption of Alternative Disputes Resolution mechanisms in line with the Constitution because resolution of disputes will be easier and faster through alternative disputes resolution methods like arbitration and reduce case backlog in court”’ – High Court Judge, Lady Justice Jacqueline Kamau, 2015 Arbitration is one among other various alternatives to dispute resolution. It has attracted multiple definitions based on the different dimensions of its application. For…

By Warren Beech Africa is home to about 30 per cent of the world’s mineral reserves, 10 per cent of the world’s oil, and eight per cent of the world’s natural gas. Extractives form a critical part of mineral rich economies in Africa and contribute directly to the GDP. Understanding the present, securing the future, and yet extracting the continent’s vast natural wealth remains a high-risk gamble for many investors. This is especially due to a seemingly insatiable thirst from Western consumers. So what is the current state of the mining industry in Kenya and across the continent? Kenya’s nascent…

antony mutunga Economic growth without social progress lets the great majority of the people remain in poverty, while a privileged few reap the benefits of rising abundance. – John F. Kennedy Africa has come a long way from the days that the continent was known as the hopeless continent because of its tragedies such as floods, famine, civil unrest and war, disease and deep poverty. However, ever since the start of the 21st century things have turned around for the continent as it has experienced a robust economic growth. For instance, according to McKinsey Global Institute (MGI), between 2000 and…

NLM Writer “Cynics have a price for everything yet understand the value of nothing” On average, a human adult consumes 40 litres of water in a day: 3 litres as drinking water, 20 for his bath and whatever remains for his meals and other sanitary needs. A 20-litre gallon of water goes for some Sh30 locally. Sh20 though isn’t enough to buy one a litter of clean bottled drinking water. As a result, many have resorted to boiling drinking water or, better yet, using purifying agents. Many still have simply resigned themselves to fate. They buy from the vendor and…