Author: staff reporter

by Maximilla Wafula

National Human Rights Organization ( Hakijamii) led by Executive Director Amina Hashi today launched the State of Housing Report Volume 3 at the Ufangamano House .The report presentation by prof.Alfred Omenya , Eco-build Africa on the state of housing volume 3. The Hakijamii organizations which works with marginalized groups to support them in advocating for the realization of their economic, social and cultural rights .

It’s overriding mission is to strengthen the capacity of people’s organizations to participate in governmental decision – making effectively and directly inorder to realize economic and social rights as well as hold duty bearers . She said that Hakiijamii has been in the forefront in championing for the rights to adequate and affordable housing including reasonable standards of sanitation for communities . As part of its initiative to realise the right to adequate and affordable housing , Hakijamii has taken lead in development of the state of housing in Kenya report ; a publication that seeks to take stock of achievements and challenges faced in implementation of the affordable housing policies and programmes. The state of housing Reports Vo. 1, 2and 3 review the government’s housing programme between 2017-2022 .she said ..
The outcome expected is to get the findings and recommendations of the state of housing report vol.3 will provide a framework for evaluation and reflections to ensure to ensure learning is used to inform program interventions and provide insight in planning at community, county and national level.

By Steve El Sabai

As the National Assembly former majority leader Aden Duale climbed the ladder after being appointed the Defence Cabinet Secretary (CS) a youthful entrepreneur Abdiweli Duntow has thrown his hat into the ring to succeed Duale as the Garrissa Township Member of Parliament (MP).

Duntow is seeking to succeed Duale on the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA) ticket running for a political seat for the first time in his life.

The youthful businessman is popular in the constituency owing to his philanthropic work and development projects.

Duntow is on record of paying school fees for children from needy families, paying hospital bills to patients unable to pay, sinking of boreholes to quench the thirst of the residents in the area which suffers from water scarcity and supporting youth and women groups in income generating initiatives.

Duntow is a darling of the youth through promotion of sports and development of talents as well as initiating income generating projects geared towards supporting jobless young people in poverty alleviation initiatives.

Duntow initiated development in the area without undermining Duale or showed any signs of trying to oust him as MP but worked together as development partners of Garissa Township constituency.

Now that Duale has exited the scene, Duntow wants to fit into his shoes and take up from where Kenya’s incoming Defence Cabinet Secretary left.

“I have been tried and tested through the development initiatives that I have been initiating despite the fact I was not an elected leader. I know Garrissa Township constituency’s terrain very well and can be trusted to govern the area effectively as an MP. I worked with Duale and can be able further his agenda for the constituency blended with mine for a masterplan,” said Duntow.

Duale is leaving his post as MP after serving Garrissa Township for three uninterrupted terms after being appointed by President Dr William Ruto to serve as a Defence Cabinet Secretary.

Duale was a former Majority Leader of the National Assembly of Kenya under the Jubilee Party in the 11th parliament serving from 2013 to 2017 and the 12th parliament where he partial served at the same position until he was impeached for supporting the current president, Dr William Samoei Ruto who was then serving as the Deputy President (DP).

He was elected first in 2007 under the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party. He ditched ODM in 2012 and helped Ruto to form the United Republican Party (URP) whose ticket he was elected as the MP representing Garissa township constituency and in 2017 under the Jubilee Party.

By Maximilla Wafula

Women Entrepreneurs,  Bernadette  Owino has urged Kenyans  to plant trees  in order to combat climate change.

“People should  be taught to plant more trees. It attracts more rain while trees ensure that the soil will not be eroded,” Owino said during the ECOBank  Ellevate launch.

She said that even as farmers  cultivate food crops they should plant cover crops in order to protect their soil fertility.

Bernadette  Owino, who was in formal employment, decided to take a leap of faith and engage in  farming as an enterprise.

She currently has   tree seedlings  for sale at her farm  in Kitengela.

Owino has 1,500 grevalia and 1000 melia seedlings ready for purchase.

She noted that trees have value as they can be sold for timber in  10-15 years  for between  3,000 shs and 7,000 shs each.

by Jeff Kizilah

Mr. George Mburu Mizizi Africa who started his property development in
2019 says it has not been smooth sailing, but the real estate sector is the next big thing.

Mr.Mburu is among the aggressive property investors in the market.

Now Muzizi Africa controls around 200 to 300 properties units in Kagundo,Kiambu and Kilifi county.

“We use almost 90% locally based materials and import less,in away to upgrade our local market “,he added.

He says the plan is to diverse their properties developedment with an affordable price across the country.

However the price of land and cost of construction have up but Mburu says that will be sorted as things goes.

He says tye pandemic and election period have taught developers lessons to be flexible when dealing with investments.

He says even though the cost of living might eat into money ment for investment, it would be worthwhile to invest when things are tough because the fruits will be sweet.

Mr. Mburu says things are beginning to look up and people are still buying houses.

by Maximilla Wafula

Dr Vidya on Thursday inspired women entrepreneurs to pursue their dreams.

She urged women to be bold and even enter male dominated fields.

by Maximilla Wafula

Susan Gichia the General Manager, Finance &Administration and a Director of Broadcom Group,
today spoke in a panel discussion during the launch of ellevate by Ecobank Programme where she addressed women on a largely untapped and underserved segment strategically important and huge opportunities in entrepreneur sector. She also shared her humble background in her family that motivated many young entrepreneurs.
Her role in financial management includes planning, organizing, measuring and controlling the organizations resources focuses on achieving the organization mission and vision.

With 27 years experience in diverse Industries, Susan has been involved in financial management for societies, non-governmental organizations and profit making institutions. She has extensive knowledge of product costing and pricing , project accounting, micro finance accounting, statutory requirements, taxation matters & international standard financial reporting.

Wahome owns more than 12 companies and plans to venture into solar business.

Susan also offers support in administration. Her main objective is to exceed both internal and external customer expectations through best practice processes and procedures yet achieving optimal financial results and ensuring growth and innovation.
She is a Graduate of Strathmore University and a member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya (ICPAK).

By Maximilla Wafula

Dr. Esther Muchemi
The founder and CEO of Samchi Telecom today spoke in a panel discussion during the launch of ellevate by Ecobank Programme where she addressed women on a largely untapped and underserved segment in the entrepreneur sector.

She also talked how she made her investments early when she spent little money of her savings to establish a Safaricom outlet as one of the early adopters of the network’s dealers.

Her friends laughed at her but Esther knew what she was doing, a time when sim cards cost as high as Ksh 2, 500.

She has been able to recoup the investment many times to build one of the leading telecom dealerships. Her investments now cut across many industries like microfinance, real estate and hospitality where she owns five-star hotels in Nairobi and Mombasa and runs more than 20 Companies under her brand .
Ellevate by Ecobank , which is a flagship Women’s Programme, focuses on empowering , growing and supporting women – led and or women focused businesses with the customized financial and value -added solutions that will help them succeed. She added .

In attendance was
Bertha Dena, Board Member Ecobank Kenya Limited, Dr. Esther Muchemi, CEO Samchi Group, Dr. Divya Gandhi CEO, Prime Teleradiology Solutions Limited among others.

Ends .

3000 youth are set to benefit from an internships and job placement program through a partnership between BrighterMonday Kenya, Creative Management Consultants Ltd, and The Kenya Youth Employment and Opportunities Project (KYEOP) under The Ministry of ICT, Innovation and Youth Affairs.

The partnership was ratified and announced on Monday 19th September 2022  at the Ministry of ICT offices in Nairobi, Kenya marking the start of the World Bank-funded initiative that aims to drive socio-economic development for the youth. 

Announcing the partnership, BrighterMonday Kenya noted that the program will lay the ground for both organizations to shape more strategies for the youth to get empowered and be viable for employability. The project will offer opportunities to the Kenyan youth, drawn from 17 counties across the country who will get access to different employers across diverse work disciplines.

The announcement comes at a time when the unemployment rate in the country is on the increase with World Bank data showing that 5.7 percent of Kenya’s labour force was out of work in 2021, up from 2.8 percent in 2013. The initiative is timely to improve youth employability in the target counties and improve the livelihoods of young Kenyans.

National Project Co-ordinator at KYEOP Augustine Mayabi noted” We are happy to witness the unveiling of a great initiative that will enable the youth in these 17 counties to get access to training and employment opportunities. We have noticed that after training these youth with various training institutions, we lose track of some and we now want to bring them back on board to offer internships and employment opportunities as they are fully equipped. This is such a great step towards curbing unemployment because so many youths lack the necessary skills to help them land opportunities. We value such impactful and life-changing initiatives”

BrighterMonday’s  CEO  Brian Ntambirweki, further stated, “We remain keen on supporting the youth and enabling them to get access to jobs in Kenya, and by collaborating with the Ministry of ICT under KYEOP, which is working on different initiatives, we are confident that we are heading towards the right direction in solving labour market challenges in Kenya,”.

As Mercy Ships (www.MercyShips.Africa) marks 30 years of service on the continent, providing free surgical care, training, and support from its hospital ships to local development projects in Africa, its Africa Bureau Director Dr. Pierre M’Pele calls for continued vigilance and tireless pursuit in the efforts to improve the level of health of African populations.

Life expectancy across Africa has increased by 10 years since 2000 — a result of interventions such as the implementation of the 2000-2015 Millennium and successful commitments made by national governments in the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2015-2030. Working to serve the greatest number of people in a sustainable way, having a people-centered vision, and planning for greater investment in health as part of national development programs, in conjunction with good democratic governance, stability and economic growth have also positively influenced health indicators across the continent.

“We must absolutely celebrate these positive results, however, we must be cautious and avoid complacency, because this positive news is a tree that hides the forest,” says Dr M’Pele. “One-third of clinical conditions in Africa require surgical, obstetric, and anesthetic care, and yet there is less than 1 surgical specialist per 100,000 inhabitants, so surgery is a particularly neglected component of health systems in Africa. It is a critical area where much improvement needs to be made. While much of the world is looking to the latest technologies to improve their clinical care, we are saying that in Africa, there is still a lot of work to do to increase the number of qualified, specialized, and dedicated doctors and nurses too.”

Access to quality, safe, and affordable surgical, obstetric, and anesthesia care is a luxury in most African countries, and especially for the poorest populations. The challenge of equity and the integration of surgical and anesthesia care into national health systems are prerequisites for achieving Universal Health Coverage in Africa.

ORGANIZATIONS OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES THE UNCONSTITUTIONAL NOMINATION IN 22 COUNTY ASSEMBLIES

By Maximilla Wafula

The Executive Director , association for physically disabled of Kenya ( APDK) Mr.Joseph Atela today with other organizations for persons with disabilities (OPDS) working with the consortium of disabled persons organizations in Kenya ( CDPOK) held a press briefing and called on the government to ensure inclusive governance and proper representation of persons with disability in all county assemblies , national assembly and senate .They congratulated all the elected legislators with disability in both National assembly and the County assemblies .

Atela noted that the politicians gave a spirited fight in the campaign trails as the electorate trusted in their leadership skills and the manifesto they presented to them.

IEBC gazetted 186 nominees to the county assembly

CDPOK noted with heightened concern that there was lack of representation of persons with disabilities in 22 county assemblies. This manifested continuation of previous patterns of intentional oversight where after 2017 General election , a total of 17 County assemblies did not have a single representation of persons with disability.

They called for open and fair democratic process that encompasses a component of fair representation and non discrimination as expressed in Article 81( c) of the Kenya constitution. Their representation and decision making spaces is essential in guaranteeing their inclusion and participation in societal affairs , Article 177in our constitution envisioned such representation .

Joseph Atela said that CDPOK has
filled a petition in court to challenge the lack of proper respresenation.

CDPOK expects the government to ensure actual implementation of Article 54 ( 2) that provides for a minimum of 5% representation of with disability for both appointive and elective positions , for examples Cabinet , Secretary, PS CAS CECs Ambassadors,CAS ,CECs, Ambassador’s, Commissioners, Parastatal boards , CEOs and many others.

Ends.