Category: INTERNATIONAL
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1,000 Kenyan drivers sign up with US taxi-hailing firm Uber
Online taxi hailing company Uber says it has signed up nearly 1,000 Kenyan drivers onto its platform since it began operations in January 2015. The US-based company also announced yesterday that it has clocked eight million kilometres in Kenya since its launch in Nairobi 15 months ago. “Over 100,000 of you choose Uber every month…
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Zimbabweans wary of return of unloved currency as cash shortage bites
Zimbabweans are worried that central bank plans to circulate local bank notes to ease dollar shortages could open the door to rampant printing of cash as happened in 2008 when inflation hit 500 billion percent, wiping out savings and pensions. Since January 2009, the southern African country has used foreign currencies, including the US dollar,…
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CBK’s 2015 profits triple to Sh48bn on forex gains
The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) 2015 net profit (or surplus) more than tripled to Sh48 billion on the back of a huge unrealised foreign exchange or revaluation gains. According 2015 audited financial statements and accounts of the commercial banks’ regulator, the realised or actual profit was Sh7.4 billion, a major turnaround from a loss…
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KENYA- Vodafone, Treasury to pocket Sh22bn Safaricom dividends
British firm Vodafone and the Treasury are set to pocket Sh22.8 billion in dividends from Safaricom after the telecommunications giant declared a Sh38.1 billion profit and offered to pay owners Sh0.76 for every share held. At Sh38.1 billion, Safaricom’s net profit for the year ended March was 20 per cent higher than the Sh31.8 billion…
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MTN’s chairman to stay on to deal with Nigerian fine
MTN Group’s interim executive chairman is to stay on in his role while he continues to try and settle the dispute with Nigeria over a $3.9 billion fine imposed on the South African telecoms company, its spokesman said on Thursday. Phuthuma Nhleko took temporary charge of Africa’s biggest mobile phone networks operator in November after…
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Nigeria-Press Statement on current fuel situation
We have just finished a meeting of various stakeholders presided over by His Excellency, the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The meeting had in attendance the Leadership of the Senate, House of Representatives, Governors Forum, and Labour Unions (NLC, TUC, NUPENG, and PENGASSAN). The meeting reviewed: 1. The current fuel scarcity and…
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South Africa to add 7,000 MW of renewable power to grid by mid-2016
South Africa will connect 7,000 megawatts (MW) of renewable power to its grid by mid this year when the first 47 projects become fully operational, the energy minister said on Wednesday. Africa’s most industrialised country has turned to solar and wind power to plug electricity shortages, Tina Joemat-Pettersson told parliament. She also reiterated that the…
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Kenya-First Community’s cheaper loans turn focus on big banks’ pricing
First Community is the cheapest lender in the country, raising queries on the loan pricing of large banks that enjoy economies of scale and price transparency. New data from the Central Bank of Kenya shows First Community is lending at an average 11.7 per cent compared to the industry’s 17.8 per cent average. The interest…
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Botswana targets average economic growth of 4.4 percent in next 6 years: finmin
Botswana will target an average economic growth rate of 4.4 percent in the next six years under a medium-term socio economic framework from 3.8 percent currently, the finance minister said on Monday. But the targeted growth rate will not be enough to address the southern African country’s development challenges, which include poverty, income inequality and…
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Egypt: 1.1 Million Tons of Wheat Collected From Farmers
Agriculture Minister Essam Fayed said on Saturday 7/5/2016 that about 1.1 million tons of wheat have been collected from farmers so far. Fayed said the Principal Bank for Development & Agricultural Credit paid 300 million pounds for farmers and a similar sum will be transferred to the bank on Sunday 8/5/2016 to pay all financial…