Google, a major tech company, has announced its plans to implement a 16% VAT on all taxable gods and services in Kenya, on its platform. The implementation is expected to start from February 1st 2023. The move comes after the Kenyan government introduced the VAT (Digital Marketplace Supply) (Amendment) Regulation 2022 which has redefined digital marketplace for VAT purposes. The proposed change was to shift the liability to account for VAT transactions on digital marketplace supplies to the non-resident provider of the services. Services to be taxed in the digital marketplace will include software programmes, subscription-based media, downloadable digital content, tickets…
Author: NLM Team
In 2022, growth in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) slowed to an estimated 3.4%, according to recent Global Economic Prospects report by the world bank. This was as a result of weakening external demand, high inflation, tightening global financial conditions and disruptions caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. This resulted in soaring food and energy prices, sharp cost-of-living increases across the region, and increased food insecurity and poverty. Nigeria, the region’s largest economy witnessed a slowdown as well as oil output greatly dropped by over 40% due to rising production costs and decline in investment. Other leading countries such as South Africa,…
Kenya continues to lead its fellow African countries in relying on renewable energy sources as 86.98% of the electricity generated in the country comes from renewables according to an annual report by the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA). EPRA states that the country currently generates more than 12,652.74 gigawatts hours of electricity annually, of which a majority is produced from geothermal and hydroelectric sources. And even though wind and solar energy contributions are yet to catch, they have been rising at a fast rate. And with the speed they will be an added advantage to take the percentage to…
Increasingly embattled by mobile money providers, traditional institutions are looking to wrestle control from industry leader, M-PESA, in a battle that could catalyse further innovation and financial inclusion in the region. By Seth Onyango “If you can’t beat them, join them” is the approach traditional banks in Kenya are adopting as they seek a greater slice of the mobile money market dominated by Safaricom’s M-PESA service. Because of its widespread adoption by small businesses and individuals in Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, DR Congo, Lesotho, Ghana and Egypt, M-PESA is a dominant player in the African mobile money market. However, traditional banks…
The words of the Greek father of tragedy, Aeschylus, “It is not the oath that makes us believe the man, but the man the oath,” should always ring in mind and stir the conscience of any oath-taker. In every civilized society, oaths are solemn commitments to build trust. They are the thread that weaves people’s hearts in any matter. Consequently, the only true measure of fidelity to the oaths is not the sweetness of the utterances but the conduct of the oath taker. In Kenya, leaders have to take oaths upon assuming public office as required by law and democratic traditions.…
A recently released study shows that every 50th scan finds at least one threat. As the festive season shopping is picking up, Surfshark Antivirus reports a rise of 572% in cyberthreats in Kenya in mid-December. Kenya had a threat rate of 16 threats per 100 scan cycle. In the past two months, the most common threats in Kenya have been riskware and SPR. “The holiday shopping season leading up to Christmas is not only beneficial for the retailers but cybercriminals too,” says Nedas Kazlauskas, Antivirus Product Owner at Surfshark. “People searching for gifts and deals online during the period of huge discounts…
The rise in EdTech in countries like India and China over the past several years has enabled governments to address the challenges they face in their education systems – namely, providing at scale and a low cost, anytime and anywhere, quality, and personalized educational materials to improve each student’s learning experience. These established education technology (EdTech) markets in other geographical regions are ripe for Africa to emulate. In India, which faces similar challenges to Africa in terms of lack of resources, availability of trained teachers, and poverty, EdTech was the third most funded sector in 2021, attracting $4.7 bn in…
By Prof John Harbeson The fifteen-year gradual but clear decline in democratic practice around the globe, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, has become common knowledge. Freedom House, in particular, has traced this democratic retreat since about 2005. Still, the Varieties of Democracy Project (V-Dem) and the measurement protocols of other international non-governmental organizations have documented the same trendline. The critically important but too infrequently addressed questions are why has this worrisome downward trendline occurred, and how can it be reversed? The heartening good news is that Afrobarometer’s comprehensive citizen surveys in nearly forty countries over the last two decades have recorded…
Why withdrawal of high-profile cases by the ODPP is a threat to constitutionalism in Kenya By Felix Okanga The Constitution of Kenya 2010 brought with it an aura of belief and trust in constitutionalism as a governance tool. The new faith in the Constitution was because of the apprehension that the Constitution demanded accountability from State organs and officers, public officers, and any person who applies the Constitution or any law. The import of the provisions of Article 10 of the Constitution is that there are specific non-negotiable national values and principles of governance binding on all State organs, State…
By Carmel Rickard As judicial interest grows in the role that judges and courts should play relative to elections, the president of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights has addressed a conference of the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), Kenya on the issue. Among other questions, Justice Imani Aboud discussed the contribution that courts can make, through their work as arbiters of the law, that would help assure voters, and politicians, that elections are fair, and thus help reduce the likelihood of violence related to polls. The president of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Imani…
