Author: NLM Correspondent

STANDING on a muddy patch of grass in Mathare, a district in the eastern part of Nairobi, Kevin surveys his handiwork. From an electricity pylon, a thick bundle of crudely twisted wire hangs down into a tin-roofed shack. From there it spreads to a dozen more. Single wires run perilously at eye level over open sewers, powering bare light-bulbs, kettles and blaring speakers. In exchange for a connection, Kevin and six of his friends collect 200 shillings per month each from about a hundred shacks in his corner of the slum. To protect the business, the gang pays off police…

By Fuad Abdirahman Aden Duale is an anxious man. His influence is on the wane. The entry of Farah Maalim into the Garissa Township MP race significantly threatens his chances of another stint as MP. In his homecoming party at the Islamic school of Salam in Garissa months after he was sworn in as MP, Duale will be remembered for blasting the teachers who had organised the event for “choosing their son Maalim over him. “…Now that Uhuru has given me a bigger job, you want my support,” he rapped. Unimpressed, one of the teachers is alleged to have warned…

Most of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) consumers in the country are likely to be purchasing half-filled cylinders due to illegal gas refilling by dishonest traders. Government regulatory authorities and some dealers say that the problem is rampant in some areas in the country and that they are doing everything in their capacity to resolve it. As a result, such acts have since prompted the government of Kenya to ban the importation of gas from Tanzania through land routes. On Monday, Kenya’s Ministry of Energy banned imports of cooking gas through the common border – on land only – for now.…

Three international development agencies have come together to mobilise more than $1 billion (Sh100 billion) for power generation across Africa, including the 147MW Ruzizi III project that will supply electricity to Burundi, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda. The Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED), its industrial and infrastructure development arm, Industrial Promotion Services (IPS) and CDC Group, the UK development finance arm, launched the joint power initiative with a promise to boost power generation, accelerate economic growth and benefit millions of people in sub-Saharan Africa. The partnership will focus on new power projects in greater East Africa…

The UN panel of experts for South Sudan has directed the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (Igad) member states to immediately impose travel bans and asset freezes on the country’s military commanders sanctioned by the Security Council last year. The UN Security Council sanctioned at least six commanders from both the government and opposition forces for committing gross atrocities since the onset of the war in 2013. The military commanders targeted were Major General Marial Chanuong Yol, who is in charge of presidential guards, Lieutenant General Gabriel Jok Riak and Major General Santino Deng Wol, all from government side. Fresh report…

By Seán Nolan, Hans Weisfeld and Klaus Hellwig Almost three years into the sharp drop of global commodity prices that started in mid-2014, economic conditions have become very difficult for many of the world’s 60 poorest countries — a group the International Monetary Fund refers to as “Low-Income Developing Countries” (LIDCs). As discussed in a recent report by the IMF, the situation is particularly challenging for commodity-dependent countries, which have seen tax and export revenues shrink markedly in response to lower commodity prices. With commodity prices expected to remain subdued over the medium term, more decisive policy changes will be…

Rev Dr Joseph Wandera On Wednesday, March 22, 2017, a lone driver made a daring attack near Britain’s House of Commons in London. Four people, including a 48-year old policeman, were killed, while 40 others were injured. London is city of tolerance, a multicultural crowded and dynamic place, qualities that attract many to live there. The attack aimed at tearing such diversity apart and filling people with fear and hate. The Islamic State claimed responsibility. In moments like these, it helps to step back and reflect on the repugnant nature of terror, for Britain has similarly exerted itself in the…

By Kenyatta Otieno In one of my articles in this magazine, I enumerated how the common man’s approach to the law makes the law look more foolish than an ass. I spoke about how I used to wonder if it is an “ass” or an “arse” until I came to my own conclusion. To the rich it is the animal ass (donkey) because in its foolishness, it can carry their burdens. To the poor it is the bottom (body part) because in its foolishness, at best, it will fart; at worst, it shits on them. Recently, Kenya Medical Practitioners and…

Dr Ng’ang’a Gĩcŭmbi Because of the paucity of life-stories of pioneer women educationists, especially during the exciting post-colonial period, Kenya’s literary and socio-cultural scene has become the poorer. It is a serious tragedy that many of our unheralded professional icons of the 1960s and 1970s, arguably Kenya’s golden era, are dying out, and many of them without penning down their memoirs or leaving behind documented evidence to help others write their stories for the sake of posterity! In advanced societies, innovative leaders in business, public service, industry, science and technology, take it as a sign of national pride and public…

Prefects are extremely powerful people at the Alliance High School. Next in line are house committee members, then a cabal of rich pretty boys. An English speaking horde, these rich boys are sons of ministers, judges and PSs who often join the system via the back door. Then there are the commoners – the ordinaries – young men from Turkana, Mandera and Pokot, where they came from affluent backgrounds; students who are just students, nice and humble also fall in this category. Teachers are virtually powerless, so prefects run the show – like a military camp. They have offices and…