Author: David Indeje

All is not lost for consumers of Huawei devices following Google’s move to suspended business with Huawei in compliance with the U.S. government’s order to place it on its Entity List. “For users of our services, Google Play and the security protections from Google Play Protect will continue to function on existing Huawei devices,” a Google spokesperson said on Monday. https://twitter.com/Android/status/1130313848332988421 According to Reuters, citing a source close to the matter, “Huawei Technologies Co Ltd will immediately lose access to updates to the Android operating system, and the next version of its smartphones outside of China will also lose access…

Cybersecurity skills shortage is worsening in Kenya amidst the raising cases of breaches according to the 6th edition of the Cyber Security Report by Serianu Limited. “We estimate that today, Kenya needs at least 10,000 cybersecurity professionals to keep abreast with the number of organisations in need of this critical skill, yet we have observed that each year, just about 100 new personnel join the market. In another five years, going by the current rate of technology uptake, we anticipate that the country will need at least 50,000 cybersecurity professionals,” says William Makatiani CEO, Serianu Limited. The report indicates only…

Kenya has unveiled its Digital Economy Blueprint anchored on five pillars as a guiding tool for the adoption of digital technologies for Africa’s transformation. President Uhuru Kenyatta launched the blueprint-themed “powering Kenya’s transformation”  at the Transform Africa Summit in Kigali, Rwanda. He said “It is intended as a framework to guide us as we accelerate the adoption of digital technologies. I hope all countries will find value in contextualizing this framework to their specific ecosystems so as to realize the full potential of our digital transformation,” the President noted as he launched the blueprint at the Transform Africa Summit in…

The Kenyan Government sold KSh210 billion ($2.1 billion) Eurobond, in tranches of 7- and 12-year tenors, for budgetary allocation and to repay KSh75 billion bond maturing in June. The dual tranche bond was oversubscribed more than four times, the finance ministry said on Thursday. https://twitter.com/PaulWallace123/status/1128692377403691008 “The issuance of this bond followed extensive engagements and consultations with over 100 investors in the United States of America (Los Angeles, Boston and New York) and in the United Kingdom (London). The roadshows began on 8th May, 2019 and ended on 14th May 2019.” the ministry said in a statement. READ: Kenya not Likely…

Microsoft Corp. plans to spend over  Kshs 10 billion over five years to open its first development centers in East and West Africa. Initial sites will be in Nairobi and Lagos. “The Africa Development Centre will be unlike any other existing investment on the continent. It will help us better listen to our customers, develop locally and scale for global impact,” Phil Spencer, Executive Vice President at Microsoft said. “Beyond that, it’s an opportunity to engage further with partners, academia, governments and developers- driving impact in sectors important to the continent, such as FinTech, AfriTech and OffGrid energy.” The company…

Economist David Ndii is calling for the withdrawal of The crops (Amendment) (No.2) Bill 2019, which proposes that all coffee grown in Kenya shall be processed in the country and clearly labeled as a ‘Made in Kenya’ before being exported. The legislation by Gatundu South MP Moses Kuria posits that all coffee grown in Kenya shall undergo processing, production and packaging within the country. “The Bill is to ensure that for the purposes of a favourable balance of trade and balance of payment, coffee shall not be processed from Kenya in its raw form,” Kuria says in his Memorandum of…