Author: Muthoga Mungania

American global rating agency Moody’s has downgraded Kenya’s credit standing from B3 to Caa1 after the withdrawal of the finance bill following weeks of anti-government protests. The credit rating agency cited failure to implement austerity measures on expenditure foregoing revenue-raising measures in the Finance Bill 2024. President William Ruto’s withdrawal of the finance bill, a...

Japanese shipping company Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), is acquiring a 25 per cent stake in Tanzania-based Alistair Group strengthening its logistics foothold in Africa. The Tokyo-based logistical firm and Alistair will merge their operations to offer ocean and air freight forwarding, land transport and warehousing among other services. MOL has a global network and prowess...

The Democratic Republic of Congo is yet to pay the $14 million it owes to the East African Community in contributions, despite indications during Friday’s sitting of the East African Legislative Assembly about the payment of these arrears. Only half of the EAC’s $103 million budget for the 2023/24 financial year had been paid by...

Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed is in talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB) for $10.5 billion in financial assistance. The PM raised concerns over the burgeoning budget deficit in an address to the Parliament on Thursday. “The negotiations with the IMF and WB are taking a long time. They...

The Public Service has turned down the Salaries and Remuneration Commission’s (SRC) offer of a pay rise for state officials. On Wednesday, July 3, Cabinet Secretary for Public Service Moses Kuria instructed the commission to degazette the implementation of the new proposed pay in a letter to SRC Chairperson Lyn Mengich. “As the Cabinet Secretary...

The price of fresh tilapia increased to 8.7 per cent from 3.8 per cent pushing Uganda’s inflation from 3.6 per cent to 3.9 per cent in June from the month before. Official data from the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) shows chicken prices increased by 9.1 per cent in June compared to 4.6 per cent...

Equity Group shareholders have approved the establishment of a new health insurance subsidiary in Kenya, during the 20th annual general meeting, in an expansion move of its insurance business. The lender’s offerings have been extending beyond banking with a general insurance business also set to roll out by the end of June this year, raising...

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has raised concerns over the ongoing demonstration in Kenya against the finance bill. In a statement released on Wednesday, the organisation expressed sadness over the state of the nation and the lives lost in the protests. “We are deeply concerned about the tragic events in Kenya in recent days and...

President William Ruto has bowed to public pressure, conceded and withdrawn the finance bill 2024 that brought a raft of new taxes after days of anti-tax protests that saw part of the Parliament in ashes. The bill was passed on Tuesday by the members of parliament (MPs) and was awaiting the president’s signature to be...