- ROME, May 3 (Xinhua) — Global food prices rose for the second consecutive month in April, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reported Friday. It was the first time they rose in consecutive months in more than two years, FAO said. A significant increase in prices for meat,…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 4 – The government has released over Sh2.08 billion for the April payment to beneficiaries enrolled in the Inua Jamii Program. In a statement, the principal secretary of Social Protection and Senior Citizen Affairs, Joseph Motari, stated that the state has further released Sh7…
- BY ALMA NUMIĆ NAIROBI, Kenya, May 3 – Conversational messaging channels are witnessing rapid growth, reflecting a growing consumer desire for stronger connections with the brands they support. Whether customers engage with a human agent, a chatbot, or a combination of both, conversational support…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 3 – WhatsApp remains the most popular online platform in Kenya, leading with 22 percent of the market share, according to the latest report on the state of the media in the country released by the Media Council of Kenya (MCK). Facebook and video sharing platform YouTube account…
- GUANGZHOU – Chinese home appliance giant Midea Group saw its revenue rise 10 percent year-on-year to 106.5 billion yuan ($14.99 billion) in the first quarter of 2024, the company said on Monday. It was its highest quarterly revenue since the second quarter of last year, when it raked in 101.2…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 3 – The Kenyan government launched the first Electric Mobility Draft Policy, setting in motion plans to adopt and accelerate the use of electric vehicles (EVs) in the country. During the event, the Cabinet Secretary, Roads and Transport, Kipchumba Murkomen, said the document…
- KISUMU, Kenya, May 3 – Beach Management Units (BMUs) along the Lake Victoria Basin have called for help in the wake of floods, which have affected several landing beaches, thus threatening a shortage of fish in the country. Tom Guda, National Chair, BMU Network Kenya, says the fishing community has…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 3 – KenGen plans to raise Masinga Dam by 1.5 meters to contain water overflow and hold more water during heavy rainy seasons. Already, the level of water at the dam, which is Kenya’s largest power-generating reservoir, has reached 1,058.22 meters, above its holding capacity of 1…
- BERLIN, May 3 (Xinhua) — Around 693,000 children were born in Germany in 2023, the lowest level since 2013, the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) said on Thursday. The number also marked a 6.2 percent drop compared to the previous year, according to figures published by Destatis. Meanwhile, the…
- CAIRO, May 2 (Xinhua) — China’s home appliance giant Haier inaugurated Thursday its first industrial park in Egypt in 10th of Ramadan, a city northeast of Cairo. Haier Smart Home Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of the Haier Group, invests 135 million U.S. dollars to build the Haier Egypt Ecological Park.…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 3 – The government will have to spend Sh7.8 billion to absorb 8,571Universal Health Coverage (UHC) staff into permanent positions. However, the state says that it only has Sh4.23 billion in the national budget. In a letter directed to the Head of Public Service Commission Simon…
- ANKARA, May 3 (Xinhua) — Türkiye halted all trade activities with Israel as of Thursday due to the latter’s “non-stop violence” against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, the Turkish Trade Ministry said. The move follows Türkiye’s imposition of restrictions on an array of exports to Israel since last…
- SAN FRANCISCO, May 3 (Xinhua) — Apple on Thursday announced financial results for its fiscal 2024 second quarter ending March 30, with a quarterly revenue of 90.8 billion U.S. dollars, down 4 percent year over year. The company posted its quarterly earnings per diluted share of 1.53 dollars, one…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 3 – The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) has approved the full acquisition of Shanta Gold Limited Company by Saturn Resources Limited. Saturn Resources Limited, which is under ETC Group, an investment company with assets in a diverse range of industries, including logistics…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 2 – At the recent World Economic Forum gathering in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, one topic echoed loudly throughout the discussions: the urgent need for sustainable energy solutions to address the pressing challenges of climate change and environmental degradation. Among the prominent…
- MANILA, May 2 (Xinhua) — The Philippines’ debt reduced to 14.93 trillion pesos (roughly 259 billion U.S. dollars) as of end-March, 1.67 percent lower than the country’s outstanding debt recorded in end-February, the Philippines’ Bureau of Treasury said on Thursday. The bureau attributed the…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 2 – Payless Africa, a fintech that focuses on digital payments, has launched its Kenyan operations. The firm says that it will leverage technology and target youth to drive its agenda. Its CEO, Kev Muley, said that the firm seeks to provide affordable payment solutions,…
- MOSCOW, May 2 (Xinhua) — Russia’s largest carmaker AvtoVAZ in April registered a 12-year high in record monthly sales of its Lada vehicles, the company said Thursday. According to a statement, sales of Lada commercial and passenger vehicles in Russia amounted to 45,551 units in April, up 64.8…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 2 – The government has committed to supporting the growth of local industries in the manufacturing sector to increase its contribution to GDP to 20 percent by 2027. Speaking during the re-commissioning of the East African Portland Cement Company, Trade and Investments Cabinet…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 2 – The Bank of South Sudan Governor, James Alic Garang, has urged Kenyans to invest in the country. Garang gave an example of the property market in cities like Juba, among others, which he added provided huge investment opportunities to investors with expected huge returns.…
- NEW DELHI, May 2 (Xinhua) — Two workers were killed after a boiler exploded inside a rubber factory in the northern Indian state of Punjab, police said Thursday. The explosion took place Wednesday night inside the factory in an industrial area of Jaspal Bangar village in the Ludhiana district of…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 2 – The National Treasury (NA) has reduced the budget for the financial year 2024–2025 by Sh273 billion owing to a decline in revenue collection. This means that the Ministry will cut expenditure from Sh4.188 trillion to Sh3.92 million, which starts on July 1, 2024. According to…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 2 – 120 riders on Bolt, a ride-hailing platform, have been selected to undergo a one-month entrepreneurial training course. Under its Accelerator Program in Kenya, they will be trained on online business through the Bolt Academy in conjunction with Alison, an online training…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 2 – Healthcare experts have discussed the importance of artificial intelligence (AI) in the sector, acknowledging its role in enhancing disease detection, optimizing processes, and improving patient care standards. This was interrogated during an AI workshop in Nairobi organized…
- SINGAPORE, May 2 (Xinhua) — Singapore’s major banking group DBS saw its net profit for the first quarter rise 15 percent year on year to a record 2.96 billion Singapore dollars (about 2.18 billion U.S. dollars), according to the bank’s quarterly performance report released Thursday. The total…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 2 – Legislators have rejected the Sh8 billion Social Health Insurance (SHA) ICT system set to replace the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF). The lawmakers led by National Assembly Health Committee Chair Robert Pukose stated that SHA procured an ICT system without following…
- WASHINGTON, May 1 (Xinhua) — The U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday left interest rates unchanged at a 22-year high of 5.25 percent to 5.5 percent as recent consumer data indicates that inflation continued to tick up. The central bank’s latest decision came just a few days after the Commerce…
- NAIROBI, KENYA, MAY 5 – A large number of High net-worth Individuals in the country have embraced the use of renewable energy in their properties and investments, according to the latest surveys. Knight Frank’s 2024 survey spotlighted that 90 percent of high-net-worth individuals have shifted their…
- NAIROBI, Kenya May 1 – A search and rescue operation was underway Wednesday for tourists stranded by floodwaters in over 14 tourist camps in Talek, Narok County. The Talek River overflowed due to days of heavy rainfall, locals said. Joint efforts by the National and County Government of Narok, the…
- KAMPALA, May 1 (Xinhua) — Uganda has asked Britain to stop meddling in the local politics of the East African country after London announced sanctions on three of Uganda’s senior officials over allegations of corruption. The Ugandan parliament on late Tuesday urged Britain to respect the country’s…
- NAIROBI, Kenya May 1 – Charles Ballard is now the new Chief Executive Officer of Twiga Foods, taking over from the startup’s former founder and CEO, Peter Njonjo. The appointment of the former Jumia Kenya boss comes barely four months after the abrupt resignation of Njonjo, who exited the company’s…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 1 – The Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority has directed all fuel stations impacted by flooding to suspend operations amid the risk of fuel contamination. In a statement, the authority warned that the heavy rains may damage the Petroleum Underground Storage Tank,…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 1 – The Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) has directed any retail gasoline station that has been flooded to temporarily close down amid the risk of fuel contamination. In a statement, the authority warned that the heavy rains may lead to a damaged Petroleum…
- BRUSSELS, April 30 (Xinhua) — The economy in the Eurozone saw modest growth in the first quarter of this year, although economists have cautioned against overhyping its recovery. Both the Eurozone and European Union’s (EU) economies expanded by 0.3 percent in the first quarter of 2024 compared to…
- NAIROBI, Kenya May 1 – President William Ruto has announced plans to increase the minimum salary wage by 6 percent amid high inflation and the implementation of new taxes that have reduced Kenyan spending power. Ruto directed all the relevant authorities, particularly the Ministry of Labour and…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 1 – Global biopharmaceutical company AstraZeneca has joined hands with Kenya’s Ministry of Health to tackle cancer problems facing the country through the unveiling of the Cancer Care Africa programme. Other partners include the Kenya Society of Haematology and Oncology (KESHO…
- LUANDA, May 1 (Xinhua) — Angola’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 0.9 percent in 2023 amid pressures of currency devaluation and inflation, a report by the National Bank of Angola (BNA) showed Tuesday. The BNA’s Annual Report and Accounts for 2023, using data from Angola’s National Institute…
- NAIROBI, KENYA, MAY 1 – Borana, Kenyan Somali, and Luhya communities have dominated recruitment in Sports, Arts and Social Development Fund (SASDF). In a statement, fund administrator Nuh Ibrahim stated that the three communities each had 15 employees working at the funds, accounting for 12.5…
- TOKYO, May 1 (Xinhua) — Overnight stays by foreigners at hotels and other accommodation facilities in Japan increased by 68.2 percent in March from a year earlier to about 12.70 million, the highest monthly figure, government data showed. The latest figure exceeded the previous single-month high of…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, May 1 – mTek and Britam have formed an alliance with Buy Simu to offer insurance for phones in Kenya and extend coverage for phone products in the country. According to Mtek’s CEO, Bente Krogmann, offering insurance reduces instances of defaults resulting in phone losses or damages…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, April 30 – Kenya’s monthly inflation dropped by 0.7 percent to 5 percent in March from 5.7 percent in March after food, fuel, electricity, and housing costs dropped. The latest data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows that the food and non-alcoholic beverage…
- By Amos Mzenge NAIROBI, Kenya, April 30 – The path to financial security is paved with good intentions, but there’s a sneaky villain lurking along the way, disguised as progress: lifestyle inflation. It’s the gradual, often subconscious, creep of spending as your income rises. That long-awaited…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, April 30 – Startups engaged in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) have an opportunity to participate in this year’s Google’s Startup Accelerator Africa Program. The choice of the above categories is meant to address critical challenges and unlock new…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, April 30 – 377 million women aged 15–49 years of reproductive age in 85 countries are using modern birth control methods, according to a recent report by Family Planning 2030 (FP2030). FP2030, a global initiative dedicated to promoting and expanding access to family planning…
- MANILA, April 30 (Xinhua) — A government official said Tuesday that the Philippines is mulling cloud seeding to quench the country’s thirst amid the drought caused by the El Nino phenomenon, which has affected 2.9 million people. Task Force El Nino spokesperson Joey Villarama told reporters that…
- JAKARTA, April 30 (Xinhua) — Microsoft announced on Tuesday here that it will invest 1.7 billion U.S. dollars in Indonesia, with funds allocated for the developments of artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud services. The company’s Chief Executive Satya Nadella said Microsoft will provide AI…
- NAIROBI, Kenya, April 30 – The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) is looking to streamline revenue mobilization through a collaborative approach with the Kenya Bankers Association (KBA). Following a high-level meeting between KRA Commissioner General Humphrey Wattanga and KBA CEO Raimond Malonje, it…
- NAIVASHA, Kenya Apr 30 – The Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) is set to initiate a thorough investigation into Uji Power and Okra to ascertain their authenticity. These products have surged in popularity in Kenya over the past few months, amid assertions that they enhance sexual wellness among…
- SINGAPORE, April 30 (Xinhua) — The growth in the Asia-Pacific region will moderate to 4.5 percent this year from the outperformed 5 percent in 2023, said the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its “Regional Economic Outlook Asia and Pacific” launched in Singapore Tuesday. Asia-Pacific is expected…
- TOKYO, April 30 (Xinhua) — Japan’s job availability ratio declined for the first time in three years in fiscal year 2023, the government said in a report on Tuesday. For the year through March, the job-to-applicant ratio fell 0.02 point to 1.29 from the previous year, as employers slashed job…
