Category: East Africa

Uganda and Kenya have had their fair share of infrastructural lunacy. Take the so called “Lunatic Express” referred to by Charles Miller in his 1971 book of the same name. It told of the risible Uganda Railway which connected Uganda to the Indian Ocean, through Kenya, at an estimated £3 million in 1894, marred by…

With unusually little disagreement on the floor, Parliament on Tuesday night passed a record Shs26.3 trillion post-election Budget for the 2016/17 financial year with the government staying true to what it promised in its campaign manifesto. The major objective of the Budget, according to Finance minister Matia Kasaija is to enable implementation of the ruling…

Treasury secretary Henry Rotich has asked MPs to demand the list of nominees for the Central Bank of Kenya board from President Uhuru Kenyatta who is the appointing authority. Mr Rotich said he has no power to submit the list of the nominees to Parliament after MPs amended the CBK Act to give the power…

Rwanda is in talks with the International Monetary Fund for a short-term credit facility to help it support its foreign exchange reserves in anticipation of them dwindling in future, Finance Minister Claver Gatete said on Friday. “This is a stand-by short term credit facility. Our situation is still okay. It is still okay because we…

Kenya Airways said on Thursday it was cancelling all but two of its evening flights operating until 2300 GMT after a pilots’ strike that led to 10 cancellations earlier in the day. “We are still consulting and negotiating with our pilot fraternity that is a vital part of our business and we hope to have…

Kenya will start a search this week for companies to design a crude oil export pipeline costing some $2.1 billion and which should be completed by 2021, Energy and Petroleum Minister Charles Keter said on Friday. Tullow Oil and partner Africa Oil first struck oil in Lokichar in northwest Kenya in 2012 and Keter said…

The Standard Chartered Bank Kenya let go about 167 employees last year in a restructuring plan that was initiated by its London-based parent company. The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE)-listed firm disclosed the job cuts in its latest annual report, noting that its staff count has fallen to 1,881 from the previous 2,048. Those who left…

Tanzania will charge Uganda a tariff/transit fee of Shs40,321 ($12.2) for each barrel of oil going through the crude oil pipeline to Tanga port at the Indian Ocean for exportation to the international market. The tariff, charged by Tanzania, in the final technical report presented to the heads of states, was described as the “lowest”…

Troubled lender National Bank is once again on the spot for belatedly reporting the exit of its chief executive and two other senior managers without notifying the capital markets regulator and the investing public within 24 hours as required by law. Munir Sheikh Ahmed, the bank’s suspended chief executive, last week revealed that he left…

The battle for control of Kenya’s telecoms sector regulator yesterday took a new turn after the agency’s embattled board members made public correspondence showing that the Treasury supported their position requiring Airtel to pay the Sh2.1 billion licence renewal fee. The revelation was made in response to claims by the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA)…