Author: David Indeje

Majid Al Futtaim is set to invest an undisclosed amount expanding its footprint in the Coastal city of Mombasa in response to the growing demand for modern retail in Kenya. Carrefour, which is operated in Kenya by Majid Al Futtaim, plans to open 3 outlets with its first two opening their doors in November 2020 with the first one being a 2,150 square metres space at the City Mall Nyali, formerly occupied by Nakumatt.  The Nyali store will house a home-made bakery section alongside a wide assortment of non-food and electronic products. A second one will be a two-floored 1,800…

Kenya’s Chief Justice David Maraga has advised President Uhuru Kenyatta to dissolve Parliament pursuant to Article 261(7) for failing to enact the Two-Thirds gender rule. The CJ’s advisory is based on 6 petitions from the Law Society of Kenya, former Marakwet West Member of Parliament David Sudi, Margaret Toili, Fredrick Mbugua, Bernhard Aoko, and Stephen Owoko. “…for over 9 years and despite 4 court orders, (Parliament) failed, refused and /or neglected to enact the requisite legislation,” said Maraga, “I should, pursuant to the provisions of Article 261(7) of the Constitution, advise you to dissolve Parliament.” Kenya’s constitution maintains that women…

Mercy Mutemi, lawyer with an interest in Internet Law and Policy Legislative Advisory that governs the use of the internet, says Kenya’s Senate should focus on data when probing social media platforms in the country. She was making the remarks in response to how the U.S government had handled the TikTok issue with President Donald Trump approving a deal between TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, and Oracle (ORCL). According to Ms. Mutemi, it is all about ‘protection, localization, and jurisdiction’. “And that’s on localizing data. If the Kenyan Senate is really going to carry out an inquiry into social media platforms…

The number of international tourist arrivals to Kenya in August dropped to 13,894, a 91.4 percent lower than the 161,723 arrivals recorded a similar period last year due to the novel coronavirus. According to the Tourism Performance, August 2020 report on the number of international arrivals via airports into Kenya and their purposes of visit following the re-opening of the Kenyan airspace, the highest number of arrivals were from the United States and the United Kingdom, coming in at 2,768 and 2,469, respectively, attributed to ease of travel advisories. Of the total number, 6,368 tourists (45 percent) came to Kenya…

Kenya shilling remained steady, closing at KSh 108.4 against the US dollar on Friday. This was mainly due to subdued dollar demand from importers. It exchanged at KSh 108.38 per US dollar on September 17 compared to KSh 108.40 per US dollar on September 10 said the Central Bank in its Weekly Bulletin terming the trend ‘relatively stable against major international and regional currencies’. However, during the week, on Tuesday the currency hit a historic low to trade at 108.55 to the US dollar.  According to Cytonn Investments, on a Year To Date (YTD) basis, the shilling has depreciated by…

Serena Hotel has opened its first five-star hotel in the populous Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as part of its strategic expansion plan. The listed hospitality chain which operates upscale hotels and resorts in East Africa, Southern Africa, and South Asia  in a statement said, “Goma Serena Hotel now open for bookings.” Goma in the DRC becomes home to its sixth City Hotel, the Goma Serena Hotel. “And now, for the first time ever, Goma is about to have the only 5-star hotel, Goma Serena Hotel.” Group managing director of TPS Serena Hotels – Africa, Mahmud Jan Mohamed said: “Expansion…