Author: Khusoko

Advocate Adil Arshed Khawaja has been elected the new Board chairperson of Safaricom with immediate effect. Mr. Khawaja was appointed Safaricom director in December 2022, replacing former Board Chairman and director John Ngumi, who stepped down barely five months after his appointment. Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa on Thursday said Mr Khawaja was selected during a board meeting held on the same day. “Adil is a distinguished Advocate of the High Court of Kenya with over 30 years’ experience in the legal profession,” said Ndegwa. “In recognition of his contribution towards environmental conservation and sustainability, Adil was recently awarded the Moran…

Music streaming company Spotify on Monday announced to slash 6 per cent of its workforce globally. In a memo, Daniel Ek, Spotify CEO, announced that he was too ambitious in investing ahead of their revenue growth. “And for this reason, today, we are reducing our employee base by about 6 per cent across the company. I take full accountability for the moves that got us here,” he said. As of its last earnings report, the company had just over 9,800 full-time employees. “Like many other leaders, I hoped to sustain the strong tailwinds from the pandemic and believed that our…

Head smut, a fungal disease (Sphacelotheca reiliana) affecting cereal crops, is expected to impact agriculture and food security worldwide negatively. According to Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) 2016 report, over 27 African countries expressed concern and warned of potentially disastrous consequences. In his petition to the National Assembly, Mr Collins Kiplagat, a scientist and a former Kenya Seed Field Researcher, reveals that spore dispersal is projected to increase by approximately 70% in the next decade, which will result in dramatic low yields in affected areas and mainly maize-dependent regions. In his research, a case study (H6213) in an…

Inflation has moderated over the past two months but still averages levels not seen in five years! In December 2022, headline and core inflation slowed to 9.10% and 4.10%, respectively, from 9.50% and 4.20% a month before. Given Kenya’s status as a net importer, it is undeniable that a significant portion of this price pressure stems from imported inflation. Therefore, signs of waning global inflation may portend positive local implications. This affirms our in-house baseline forecast that inflation should start to come off in the latter half of 2023 and average about 6.62% for the full year. Headline inflation will…

If 2020 was a year of unprecedented changes and 2021 was a year of recovery and resilience, then 2022 proved to be everyone’s favourite child. This was especially true for the Middle East, Turkey, and Africa region as we broke new ground to foster dialogues on climate change, advanced our space exploration capabilities, and captured the pulse of the world at one of the most watched global sporting events. Emerging technologies underscored these monumental accomplishments, giving wings to human aspirations and bringing renewed focus and vigour to economies, businesses, and day-to-day lives. 2023 promises to be equally remarkable. Here are…

The Pharmacy and Poisons Board has appointed Dr Jacinta Wasike as the Acting CEO after the contract of the long-serving CEO Dr Fred Siyoi expired. Dr Siyoi served for ten years and had reached his retirement age. Dr. Jacinta Wasike’s appointment makes history as she becomes the first woman to hold the organization’s top post. She has 20 years of experience in the industry. Prior to her new position, she served as director of corporate services at the Pharmacy and Poisons Board. Our efforts to reach the Board’s Chairman and the New CEO were unsuccessful, as their phones went unanswered.…