Author: NLM Correspondent

By Andrew Mizner The increased use of African arbitration institutions has been fuelled by investment, and confidence from the legal and business communities, but governments need to do more if these centres are to capitalise. There has been plenty of talk about making more use of African arbitration centres over the past decade, but the uptake has been limited, with foreign parties reluctant to go beyond tried and tested institutions in Europe or Asia. Gradually though, some centres have built a body of work based on domestic cases and the odd international matter, and benefitted from foreign experience-sharing initiatives. Published in…

By Hamid Abdulkareem, Jacob Omorodion and Thomas Dauvillier Recent public health emergencies and regional conflicts have highlighted the need for states to develop robust core infrastructure, deepen their economic resilience, and decrease their susceptibility to external shocks. Simultaneously, governments are increasingly conscious that their investment projects must take account of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors. In East Africa, the region’s ongoing and potential infrastructure projects face a unique set of circumstances, which may trigger future disputes. These include, among others, competition for control over natural resources, exigencies and opportunities arising out of the climate crisis and energy transition, as…

The tax law in Kenya envisages four approaches and levels of resolving tax disputes, namely, the administrative decision, quasi-judicial process involving tax Appeals Tribunal (TAT), formal judicial process involving High Court as court of first instance or appeal from the Tribunal and appeal to Court of Appeal and alternative dispute resolution on agreement of parties at administrative level or as an out of tribunal/court dispute settlement procedure. The relevant laws are the Tax Procedures Act, 2015, Tax Appeals Tribunal Act, 2013, and the relevant Tax Laws in Kenya. Parties can opt for Alternative Dispute Resolution of tax disputes at any…

Refugees are sometimes treated under immigration laws as illegal immigrants rather than as asylum-seekers under refugee legislation By Carmel Rickard Kenyan courts regularly hear cases related to people claiming to be asylum-seekers. The latest, decided three months ago, led to a judgment pointing out that the men at the heart of the matter, flagged for deportation, had the right to access Kenya’s elaborate new system designed to inquire into the validity of someone’s claim for refugee status. The two men were convicted of being illegally in Kenya and were to have been deported once they had served their term of imprisonment.…

By Payton Mathau “This Court observes that Article 157 of the Constitution does not mean that the Director of Public Prosecution is merely a conveyor belt for all investigations and findings placed before him. The office of the DPP is duty-bound to interrogate the investigations presented to it and ensure that they comply and meet the Constitutional threshold” – Hon. Justice E. K. O. Ogola in the case of Hassan Ali Joho v Inspector-General of Police & 3 others [2017] eKLR. Recently, there have been reports accusing the prosecutorial arm of the criminal justice system of overstepping its constitutional mandate.…

By Faustine Ngila Business leaders in Africa are optimistic about the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) in transforming the continent, and are actively investing in the technology to gain a slice of the global AI market. The 2022 State of AI in Africa report (pdf) published recently by AI Media Group shows that in the past five years many companies across the continent are making efforts to leverage AI for business efficiency. Most nations believe AI is at the center of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) , described as a period of rapid transformation anchored on frontier technologies such as…

Africa represents one of the highest potential markets for growth with significant natural and human capital resources untapped. Diverse and rich with opportunities, the continent is home to a number of growing markets spanning natural and mineral resources, construction, infrastructure, forestry, agriculture, tourism and cultural sectors. However, it is the continent’s human capital and digital technology potential that offers the solution to unlocking a new era of intra-African trade and growth. Following the formation of the Organization of African Unity in 1963 – now the African Union – established with a vision for an Africa that was united, free and in control of its own destiny – countries across the continent have been progressively improving intra-African trade and…

Swelling numbers of online users have seen a corresponding increase in cyber criminals who have gone a step further and evolved to increase their chances of successful hacks. Investing in digitalization has seen a number of small businesses start seeing profits as the economy recovers from the vagaries of Covid. However, this has brought on a new challenge as according to Kaspersky, there has been a 47 percent increase in Internet attacks in 2022 so far among small businesses. According to research from the global leader in cybersecurity solutions and services states that there was an increase in internet attacks,…

African countries’ requests for information for tax collection purposes rose 26% over the previous year, signalling continued progress toward tax transparency in spite of a challenging environment, according to a report by The Africa Initiative launched on Tuesday in Nairobi. The Tax Transparency in Africa 2022 report, which covers 38 countries, documents Africa’s progress in tackling tax evasion and other illicit financial flows (IFFs) through transparency and exchange of information (EOI) for tax purposes. The Africa Initiative is a partnership of the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes (The Global Forum) 33 African countries and…

Kenya Power last month set up a Live Line laboratory that is expected to boost access to electricity and reduce revenue losses. The laboratory which was set up at cost of Sh340 million under the Kenya Electricity Modernization Project (KEMP), is the first of its kind in East and Central Africa and it comes three years after the launch of the Live Line maintenance initiative. It will enable the power utility to be able to undertake maintenance without switching off customers, hence enhancing the reliability of electricity supply. According to Geoffrey Muli, Kenya Power acting managing director, the move is…