Category: East Africa
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Tanzania: Over 1.7 Million Mobile IDs Blocked
A total of 1,713,337 invalid mobile phone identity numbers (IMEIs) were switched off on June 16 by the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA). TCRA acting Director General James Kilaba told reporters yesterday that 117,389 of the IMEIs were duplicate. Preliminary estimates indicated that at least 600,000 mobile phone handsets were fake, but yesterday TCRA officials…
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Kenya:First Assurance MD out after Barclays deal
Long-serving managing director of First Assurance Stephen Githiga has left the company after Johannesburg-based Barclays Africa acquired a controlling stake in the insurer. Barclays Africa bought 63.3 per cent shares of the insurance firm last September for about Sh2.9 billion but had retained Mr Githiga as the CEO of the new subsidiary. Mr Githiga’s departure…
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Tanzania: Sh4.3 Billion for Female Engineers
The Norwegian government will provide Sh4.3 billion over the next five years to support professional development of 150 female engineers. Deputy Minister for Works Edwin Ngonyani said: “This is the second support from the Norwegian government for professional development of female graduate engineers. The last support was provided in 2010, when the Norwegian government disbursed…
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Kenya:US helping shop for airship to spy on terrorists
The US government is helping Kenya to buy floating airships that the East African nation needs to conduct surveillance missions in the fight against terrorism, drug trafficking and smuggling of contraband goods, the Business Daily has learned. The airships, also known as aerostat or blimp, are lightweight aircraft that use balloon air — helium gas…
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Kenya:Firms slow down hiring as demand for local goods falls
International demand for Kenyan goods slumped in June forcing businesses to scale down plans to hire employees. The Standard Chartered (StanChart) business sentiment indicator (BSI), a survey that measures how optimistic businesses feel about current and future economic conditions, dropped to 59.9 from 63.9 points indicating a gloomy market. “Kenyan businesses were particularly concerned about…
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Tanzania: TRA Clears Air on Vat Extent
The 18 per cent Value Added Tax (VAT) on financial transaction charges should be borne by the banks and financial institutions and not customers, the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) has maintained. TRA Commissioner General (CG) Alphayo Kidata has pointed out that the financial institutions should have sought clarification from the revenue authority before misleading the…
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Kenya:Forex reserves dip by Sh28bn as CBK fights to stabilise shilling after Brexit
Kenya’s foreign currency reserves plunged by Sh28 billion last week as the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) used its fire power to stabilise the market in the wake of financial markets’ turmoil that followed Britain’s recent vote to leave the European Union. The CBK’s reserves stood at $7.237 billion (Sh732.45 billion) at the end of…
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Kenya:Rotich’s taxes on locally made cars put 10,000 jobs at risk
Nearly 10,000 vehicle and motorcycle assembly jobs are at risk of disappearing in the wake of the recently introduced excise taxes on locally assembled vehicles, industry officials said. The assemblers said they had already retrenched 415 workers in the first five months of the year in response to a slowdown in business associated with the…
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Kenya crude oil profit level upped to $34 a barrel
Kenya has announced it can only make a profit from oil sales at $34 (sh3,434) and above per barrel ahead of small-scale crude exports next year. The Ministry of Energy on Friday gave the break-even cost that is higher than the $25 (Sh2, 525) a barrel issued by British explorer Tullow Oil in February. Kenyan…
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Uganda: Govt, Tanzania Discuss Oil Pipeline
Ministry of Energy officials from Uganda and Tanzania will pitch camp in Hoima District for two days starting tomorrow to review progress of implementation plan for development of the proposed crude oil export pipeline. The Ugandan team is led by Energy minister Irene Muloni while the Tanzanian team is led by Muloni’s counterpart Prof Sospeter…