Author: NLM Correspondent

The pandemic is adding to the growing list of non-physical damage BI scenarios such as cyber or power blackouts. By Antony Mutunga 2020 was not a good year for many as COVID-19 ravaged the world, disrupting lives and entire economies. No one had anticipated the risk the pandemic brought to the corporate world. Business interruption (#1 with 41 percent responses) and Pandemic outbreak (#2 with 40 percent) are this year’s top business risks with Cyber incidents (#3 with 40 percent) ranking a close third, the annual survey on global business risks from Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS) shows. “The…

By Kibe Mungai When judges are not free, no man can be said to have rights, for the form of justice can be twisted to serve the tyranny of the numerous, the wealthy, or the powerful. One cannot be sure of always running with the pack; he may find himself the pursued rabbit. A man cannot tell when in a civil or criminal case he may be unjustly accused, the object of widespread calumny and popular hatred, with the result that his property, his liberty or even his life, is in danger. In that day his only refuge is a…

By Joseph Lister Nyaringo As we well and truly get into 2021, we need to remind ourselves that the destiny of any society is pegged on actions, thoughts, habits, and the characters of every citizen. The raging debate to hold a referendum based on the recommendations of the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) has attracted different opinions from Kenyans. Many have questioned why it’s a priority to change a constitution that is only 10 years old. A section of Kenyans do agree that to conform to modern trends of governance and public service, an amendment is necessary. But others contend that,…

By NLM Writer There is an unending debate on the merits and demerits of rotating the presidency amongst different tribes, as one way of addressing feelings of political discontent in Kenya. On the other hand, the advocates of “meritocracy” argue that to do so is to defeat the very meaning of a constitutional democracy. The neutrals maintain that we must do a bit of both – make sure no single community hogs the presidency and the power that comes with it, and restructure our politics to reflect Kenya’s diversity. The question is, how do we do it best? Kenya’s political…

A good political system is one that allows people to compete equally, not give them handouts BY SHADRACK MUYESU It is true that we are a multilayered, highly differentiated society. And it is certainly true, that our differences compel us to pursue solutions that are different from those applied in the more streamlined West. Personally, I am pro at a rotational system which, in my view, will accommodate our differences. But I also understand that the differences are so deep and the interests so diverse that it will always be impossible to make everyone happy. What president Uhuru proposes in…

Matthew Bryden is also responsible for Eritrea’s 13-year embargo and wreaking havoc in the internal affairs of Somalia. By Fuad Abdirahman Diplomatic relations between Kenya and Somalia date back many years. Kenya is home to hundreds of thousands of Somali refugees, and Somalia has been a market destination for Kenyan goods. Recently, these relations have been ailing and now seem headed for obliteration. Between December and January, there occurred a dangerous military build-up along the two countries’ common border thanks to a coordinated campaign that misled Kenyan policymakers and infuriated the administration in Mogadishu. This sophisticated misinformation crusade is driven…

By Edwin Musonye A neglected truism in some countries is that business is all about standards, and that good business is all about good standards. Whereas there are many unstandardized matters, let’s focus on the need to put value on skills.  This has nothing to do with what the Salary and Remuneration Commission (SRC) does. National Pay Standardization here means creating pay brackets for all workforce regardless of whether they work in the public or the private sector. Divergent voices claim that we are in a free market and the forces of demand and supply must remain the only determinants…

BY Caroline Odman and Kevin Govender The term “Industry 4.0” has been used for years to describe the need for societies to adapt their work and productivity to the “4th Industrial Revolution”, in which new technologies bridge the virtual, physical and biological domains. These terms have become so dominant that governments have adopted them into their policies and planning. Against this backdrop it is important to ask whether – and how – the world of science is effectively adapting to an ever more connected and data intensive world. Is there…

BY Kasirim Nwuke COVID-19 has made it extremely difficult to mobilize the resources needed for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the time left to their target date of 2030. Indeed, as the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) reported in July 2020, the current rate of progress on the SDGs in Africa is insufficient to meet the targets. Several other recent reports echo UNECA’s view. Given these difficulties and the new challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, African countries should consider reducing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) from the current set of 17 to a…

By Tawanda Karombo Former US president Donald Trump’s last minute controversial removal of sanctions against an Israeli businessman named in corruption scandals in DR Congo’s mining industry and the jailing of another international commodity broker for bribery in a Guinea iron ore scandal this month shows just how vulnerable Africa’s lucrative resources sector has long been to international operators. For too long Africa’s mineral wealth has failed to uplift the majority of ordinary citizens out of poverty. Resource-rich countries including Zimbabwe (gold, platinum, diamonds) , Sierra Leone (diamonds), DRC (copper, cobalt, gold, diamonds), Guinea (iron ore, bauxite) and others are…