Author: NLM Correspondent

Like a double-edged sword, AI can be wielded for good or evil. Unfortunately, we currently lack adequate regulations to ensure ethical AI use. By Naini Lankas The rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been a game-changer in recent years, bringing both incredible advancements and potential dangers. While AI holds tremendous promise, it also threatens our fundamental human rights. As governments and large corporations increasingly adopt AI, How can we regulate its use to prevent abuses and safeguard our rights? Like a double-edged sword, AI can be wielded for good or evil. Unfortunately, we currently lack adequate regulations to ensure ethical…

A motion has been tabled in Parliament to allow the Cabinet Secretary for Transport to determine and regulate fares for public service vehicle operators. The National Transport and Safety Authority (Amendment) Bill, 2023, by Kimilili MP Didimus Barasa, aims to grant the Transport Cabinet Secretary substantial control over public service vehicle (PSV) fares in what could spark a clash of interests between the government and private investors within the transport sector. If the National Assembly approves this amendment, it will squarely place the responsibility on the Cabinet Secretary’s shoulders to establish minimum and maximum fare limits for passengers using public…

The spirit of the directive seeks to tame tax evasion and undervaluation of cargo, but lived reality is driving traders out of business. By Mumbi Mutoko Small-scale traders and importers are feeling the weight of implementing a directive by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), which has made significant tax changes on loose cargo. According to KRA, the directive would mean duty will be applied on the value of imported goods and aims to reduce tax evasion cases through false declaration, resulting in substantial revenue losses. Small-scale importer and trader Dennis Wambua, who spoke to Nairobi Law Monthly, says the move…

When a court orders the payment of compensation for a victim of human rights violations by state, any public officer who is involved ‘shall pay a portion of the compensation. A year after Human Rights Watch issued a strongly-worded report on torture and illegal detention carried out by security officers in Uganda, a court in that country has awarded substantial damages to a man who was held and tortured for 17 months by the country’s Internal Security Organisation (ISO). The court also ordered that the damages, and legal costs, be paid by the members of the ISO involved. Musa Nsereko brought…

By Wendy Edelberg In recent years, household finances have fluctuated amid large swings in federal income support and the stock market, a surge in inflation, and strong consumer spending. As documented by The Hamilton Project, household balance sheets at the end of 2021 were stronger than would have been expected before the pandemic. However, this Economic Analysis explains how household balance sheets have deteriorated in some respects since then. Moreover, an examination of household finances for different demographics (age, race and ethnicity, and income) shows that the deterioration in finances has been faster for nonwhite and lower income households. The…

By Mumbi Mutoko Recent actions by President William Ruto, known for being vocal on climate change, have earned him criticism for undermining his government’s climate change commitments. Two recent actions come to mind. The first is a decision to lift a six-year ban on logging imposed in 2018, informed by shrinking water resources and came amid discussions to save Kenya’s water towers. Environmentalists have argued that lifting this latest ban risks reversing the gains made in recent years to improve Kenya’s tree cover. The country surpassed its 10% minimum tree cover target in June 2022 and plans to raise tree…

Cabinet has approved the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating of Terrorism Financing Amendments Bill, 2023, which seeks to ease the rules governing cash transactions of at least Sh1 million, reducing the requirement for customers to disclose details on the source, use, and beneficiaries. As it stands, the law mandates commercial banks to report all transactions above Sh1 million to the Financial Reporting Centre (FRC) on a daily basis. The Bill, set to be tabled in parliament, aims to increase the reporting threshold by 50 per cent, a move that is mounting pressure from international companies on the government to combat money…

That most sub-Saharan African states have become profoundly fragile over their six decades of independence has been the cause and effect of millions of citizens lost to war and destitution By Prof. John Harbeson Sub-Saharan Africa is composed of 49 nation-states. Western Sahara and Somaliland have long waited in the wings, and the Maghreb states of North Africa, are conventionally, albeit debatably, regarded as looking more toward the Middle East than south across the Sahara. Everyone recognises that describing these 49 countries as nation-states Is so remote from reality as to verge on indulging in euphemism. With the possible exception…

President William Ruto’s hollowing out of state institutions – by placing loyalists in key positions and enabling his cronies – is the source of his present frustration. On August 1, 2023, the President and his deputy, Rigathi Gachagua, lashed out at government officials for showing up late to government events, with state officers suffering the ignominy of being locked out of State House where CSs and PSs had been called to sign performance contracts. The President expressed his frustration, citing instances of lateness to meetings and a lack of commitment to their work, which has translated into performance laxity. The…

The Court of Appeal in Kisumu has awarded Sh2 million in compensation to the family of a man killed during demonstrations in the County. In its ruling, the Appellate Court emphasized that the Constitution remains a safeguard against the excesses of armed police and stressed the importance of protecting the rights of unarmed citizens. The bench, composed of Justices Patrick Kiage, Mumbi Ngugi, and Francis Tuiyott, cited Article 22 of the 2010 Constitution, which focuses on the enforcement of the Bill of Rights, reaffirming the role of the courts in ensuring that citizens’ fundamental rights are upheld and given meaning.…