Author: Muthoga Mungania

All airlines from Tanzania, Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) among 17 other states, have been blacklisted by the European Commission from operations within EU airspace due to safety concerns. Air Tanzania joined the list towards the end of last year of the other African carriers like Air Zimbabwe, Congo Airways (DRC), Eritrean...

Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda have been supporting the smuggling of gold mined from Sudan, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for a decade, according to a new report by SwissAid. The report, released at the end of last month, shows that the countries above, specifically Kenya, have, over the last 10 years,...

Brand Africa which is best known for its annual Top 100 Most admired African brands index has revealed the listed multinationals Nike, Adidas, Samsung, Cocacola and Apple topped the top five list respectively similar to the standing in 2024. Africans love for Italian luxury brand Gucci saw it retain its sixth place from the previous...

Kenya paid $48 million to a French consortium without the approval of the Parliament for breach of a construction contract. The consortium involved three French firms; Vinci Highways SAS, Meridian Infrastructure Africa Fund, and Vinci Concessions SAS that were set to construct a mega highway project, however the contract was cancelled in favour of Chinese...

Nigerian based Moniepoint Inc is planning to buy a 78 percent stake in Kenya’s Sumac Microfinance as it expands its offering in the country. This adds to the trend of recent acquisitions in Kenya’s micro lending space. The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) said the transaction is set to proceed to the Central Bank of...

Ethiopian Airlines is expanding its domestic fleet and replacing the older aircrafts with the addition of two new Airbuses as it looks for additional ones upon high demand, the chief executive officer Mesfin Tasew has said. The airline acquired a pair of new Airbus A350-9005 originally destined for Chinese carrier Sichuan Airlines to keep the...

The South Sudan government is looking at a $74.32 million fine over a failed agreement with Vivacell, a telecommunications company it fell out with over an operating license. This follows a ruling from the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) tribunal, delivered on May 26, 2025, ordering the South Sudanese government to pay Vivacell the amount,...

Kenya’s ministry of finance plans to sell a big stake in Safaricom before the fiscal year ends in June, the government has said, in efforts to raise about $1.15 billion (Ksh149 billion) from the privatization of state firms. John Mbadi, the mister for finance has said Safaricom is the only company that could help the...

IHS Towers, one of the largest independent owners, operators and developers of shared communications infrastructure in the world by tower count, has agreed to sell their entire business in Rwanda to Paradigm Tower Ventures, the company has confirmed. The acquisition is set to close in the second half of 2025, subject to customary closing conditions...

The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa) has called for its member states affected by US tariffs to take a unified stance as they look for ways to navigate trade relations under Donald Trump’s regime. This comes as eight member countries stare at trade difficulties occasioned by the tariffs. The reciprocal tariffs instituted...

Rwanda’s national carrier has abandoned three of its West African routes and shifted to other parts of the continent as it broadens its flight frequencies. This comes after a February ban by the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) from using its airspace citing ‘insecurity due to armed conflict.’ RwandAir is looking to focus on the...

Rwanda’s Central Bank has maintained its key interest rate at 6.5 percent in its latest Monetary Policy Committee meeting, citing stable inflation within the target range of two and eight percent. This decision underscores the bank’s confidence in its current policy stance to support economic stability. “The MPC has decided to maintain the central bank...

Alterra Capital, a fund backed by Africa’s richest man Aliko Dangote has acquired Kenya’s old company, Pollman’s for $30.95 million (Ksh4 billion). In a notice from the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK), Africa Travel Limited will acquire 100 percent stake in Pollman’s Tours and Safaris. Alterra Capital Partners, an Africa-focused private equity firm, is behind...

Kenya is considering a ban on cashless payments for routine consumer transactions under a new amendment to the Central Bank of Kenya Bill 2025. The change will make it mandatory for businesses to accept physical cash for payments below Ksh100,000 ($775). This measure is designed to guarantee that all individuals including those who may lack...

Kenya’s largest telecom, Safaricom Plc, has reported a net profit of $354.3 million (Ksh45.8 billion) for the year ended March 2025, representing a 7.3 percent growth from the previous year. The company faced an income tax expense of $384.5 million (Ksh49.7 billion) from its Ethiopian business, which reduced its profit before tax to $720.99 million...

Warren Buffett, the world’s sixth richest person, has donated billions to Kenya after United States President Donald Trump slashed off funding to some of the critical sectors including healthcare. In new disclosures from the National Treasury, through Buffett’s foundation, named after his first wife Susan and run by his children, Kenya will receive $29.4 million...

Airtel Africa has partnered with Elon Musk’s SpaceX to expand high satellite internet speed across the continent. The partnership was announced on Monday and aims at enhancing connectivity in underserved areas in the continent. SpaceX has already acquired nine operating licenses in 14 countries where Airtel operates with a cumulative 163.1 million customer base. The...

Foreigners in Ethiopia will be allowed to own real estate in the country after the Council of Ministers ratified a draft law on the matter in a bid to encourage foreign investment. The Horn of Africa nation does not allow non-citizens to own real estate, whether residential or commercial limiting investment in the sector and...

Kenya has started formal talks to increase electricity imports from Ethiopia amid rising demand. The Kenya Power and Lighting Company (Kenya Power) chief executive Joseph Siror has revealed that the country is engaging with Ethiopia Electric Power (EEP) to allow importation of an extra 50-100 Mega Watts. “We are just asking for additional power between...

African traders in petrol, diesel and jet fuel among other oil products are set to benefit from a $3 billion facility from the African Export-Import Bank. The bank rolled out the $3 billion revolving credit line for African and Caribbean buyers to source oil products more easily from refineries on the continent. Afreximbank expects the...

Four Kenyans are among criminals wanted by Nigerian authorities for hacking a popular cryptocurrency and forex trading platform known as Crypto Bridge Exchange (CBEX). Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is looking for eight people including four Kenyans who are suspected of involvement in an incident in which users lost money on CBEX. The platform had attracted many Africans with the promise of Al-powered returns, lucrative referral bonuses, and easy withdrawals. CBEX promoters claimed the platform would offer returns of up to 30 percent in just 30 days. “The public is hereby notified that the persons… are suspected foreign…

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has set a string of targets for Kenya before unlocking new funding. Kenya will be required to meet the set revenue and spending targets from the IMF. Before signing off on the new loan under the new program, the IMF insists on seeing the upcoming budget estimates for the fiscal...

Investors have snubbed Ethio Telecom’s shares offered in an initial public offering (IPO) amid local investment rules in the Horn of Africa nation. Ethiopia’s telecommunications company, Ethio Telecom decided to go public offering up 100 million shares but has sold 10.7 million shares. The company’s chief executive officer (CEO) Frehiwot Tamiru has said the IPO...

Kenya’s President William Ruto has secured a total of $823 million in deals on the second day of his four-day state visit to China. The deals cut across different areas such as manufacturing, agriculture, tourism, and transport technology. They were signed during the Kenya-China business forum organised by the Ministry of Trade in partnership with...

Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) and Equity Group will be required to sell at least 30 percent of their stakes in their Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) subsidiaries as is required under Instruction 18. According to DRC’s central bank (Banque Centrale du Congo (BCC)), banks operating in the country should have at least four unrelated shareholders,...

Marco Rubio, the United States Secretary of State, has cancelled his planned visit to Nairobi, hours after Kenya’s President Ruto took off to Beijing for a five-day state visit to China. The Secretary of State was expected to visit Nairobi and then Addis Ababa in his first official tour of the continent. During his visit, Rubio was to discuss the Chinese influence on the continent and the multinational security support mission in Haiti. The cancellation comes a few hours after Kenyan President William Ruto departed Nairobi for a five-day state visit to China, marking him as the first African leader…

New banks will be allowed to operate in Kenya as long as they meet the minimum core capital requirements, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) says on wednesday 16 April, 2025, following the lifting of a decade-long moratorium on licensing new lenders.  The ban was imposed in 2015 against a backdrop of governance, risk management...

The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) has caught four smugglers trying to transport thousands of live ants out of the country for sale on the black market in Europe and Asia. The smugglers will be sentenced for trafficking wildlife to exotic pet markets abroad. Court documents seen by Kapital Afrik show that the officers intercepted about...

Somalia’s communications authority has granted Elon Musk’s Starlink an operating license as the internet service provider expands its offerings on the continent. This approval makes Somalia the 21st country on the continent using satellite internet service. Somalia’s National Communications Authority (NCA) made the announcement in Mogadishu where Starlink and government officials were present. The NCA...

Africa loses $88.6 billion annually to illicit financial flows (IFFs), a new report shows. The Illicit Financial Flows in Africa—which covered 12 countries shows that this represents 3.7 percent of the continent’s gross domestic product (GDP). Speaking on Thursday (10.04) during the launch of the Audit Report on IFFs in the continent—Kenya’s Auditor General Nancy...