Businesses and transport in various parts of the country including in Nairobi were paralysed for a better part of Wednesday as the opposition Azimio la Umoja Coalition began its three-day anti-government protest across the country. Protestors allied to Azimio leader Raila Odinga on Wednesday morning engaged police in running battles with some in areas like Kibra and Mathare, lighting up fires to protest against the government. Police officers engaged the rioters in running battles within the capital and in other parts of the country, with many Azimio leaders including Odinga remaining largely absent from the protests. Inside Nairobi’s Central Business District,…
Author: NLM Team
Democracies across the globe have faced multiple challenges over the past decade, and Africa has been no exception. Between 2020 and 2022, the continent experienced six coups and three coup attempts: a sharp rise from the previous two decades. Drawing on its organisational mandate and country-level presence across Africa, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) conducted a ground-breaking study to make sense of rising constitutional manipulation and the alarming uptick in military coups in Africa. The findings are captured in a flagship new report titled Soldiers and Citizens: Military Coups and the Need for Democratic Renewal in Africa. The report…
Over the last seven years, African countries have received about Sh6.2 trillion ($44 billion) from the African Development Bank to build their infrastructure, highlighting some of the financial institution’s significant achievements since its establishment years ago. According to the bank’s President Akinwumi Adesina, the funds have gone towards regional and national infrastructure projects across the continent. Speaking during the 5th Mid-Year Coordination meeting of the African Union (AU) in Nairobi, Adesina spoke of what he said has been AfDB’s greatest achievements in the continent since its establishment in 1964. During the Covid-19 pandemic, AfDB disbursed about $10 billion as part…
In a major shake-up of global passport rankings, Japan has been knocked off the top spot on the Henley Passport Index for the first time in five years and bumped into 3rd place, according to data from the International Air Transport Association(IATA). Singapore is now officially the most powerful passport in the world, with its citizens able to visit 192 destinations out of 227 around the world visa-free. Germany, Italy, and Spain all move up into 2nd place with visa-free access to 190 destinations, and Japanese passport holders join those of six other nations — Austria, Finland, France, Luxembourg, South Korea, and Sweden — in…
AFSIT aims at providing support to countries undergoing complex political transitions and countries at risk The African Union Commission (AUC) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) launched the Africa Facility to Support Inclusive Transitions (AFSIT), on the side-lines of the 5th African Union Mid-Year Coordination Meeting, in Nairobi on 15 July. AFSIT aims at providing support to countries undergoing complex political transitions and countries at risk. In May 2023, African Union (AU) Heads of State and Government reiterated a zero tolerance stance against unconstitutional changes of government (UCG) and called for collective action in developing a robust mechanism for deepening…
A former top Venezuelan diplomat was last week sentenced to 20 years in jail over the 2012 murder of the Latin American nation’s acting ambassador at her home in Nairobi. Dwight Sagaray, who was the first secretary at the embassy, was convicted, along with three Kenyan nationals, in January this year of killing Olga Fonseca. Judge Roselyn Korir sentenced all four men to 20 years in jail, which starts from January. Sagaray was tried for the murder because he was stripped of diplomatic immunity following the crime. Fonseca was found strangled in her bedroom less than two weeks into her…
The tenor of the current protests is no longer just political – it is a socio-economic uprising that bullets and force cannot stop. President William Ruto is between a rock and a hard place: demonstrations over the high cost of living are set to continue this week, with the Azimio coalition calling on Kenyans to turn up between Wednesday and Friday to protest the high cost of living. Meanwhile, business and religious leaders are pushing for a truce to end the latest political unrest, but Ruto and his allies seem unmoved. “We will not allow any more anti-government protests,” Ruto…
Chaos and rebellion roil the country over high cost of living, as police kill six in clashes with demonstrators. The opposition coalition, Azimio, will step up its anti-government protests from next week, ODM Secretary General has said. Speaking during a relevision appearance, Sifuna indicated that their decision was informed by what he called a lack of the Kenya kwanza led administration listening to Kenyans. “From next week we will have three days straight of protests from Monday to Wednesday until President Ruto listens to Kenyans,” he said. Demonstrators Wednesday poured to the streets to protest over the high cost of…
Kenya is set to implement a policy shift that will see the country cease encampment of refugees in favour of resettlement and reintegration. Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki announced last week that the plan will be rolled out in starting later this month, starting with the submission of regulations to operationalize and implement the Refugee Act of 2022. Speaking during a visit to the Dagahaley and Ifo 2 refugee camps in Garissa’s Dadaab, Kindiki expressed Kenya’s commitment to addressing the welfare of refugees in the country by fully implementing the Refugee Act of 2022. “Kenya adopted an updated, improved, and…
The country could be caught in a constitutional crisis as the deadline for review of electoral boundaries looms amidst the standoff between President William Ruto and Azimio leader Raila Odinga over appointing commissioners to the electoral agency. Article 89(2) of the 2010 constitution requires the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to “review the names and boundaries of constituencies at intervals of not less than eight years, and not more than 12 years”, and the same should be completed at least 12 months before a General Election. In addition, the Commission is required to review the number, names and boundaries…
