Author: James Wambua

Economic Data
EconomyNews
James Wambua

Researchers seek global ties to plug economic planning data gaps

Economies around Africa are grappling with poor access to timely, reliable, and credible economic data, a challenge that is frustrating economic policymakers in coming up with development plans. At this year’s African Econometric Society (AFES) forum led by Kenya’s Treasury Cabinet Secretary Prof Njuguna Ndung’u and the African Economic Research Consortium (AERC) Executive Director Prof Théophile Azomahou, speakers called for reliable economic statistics from econometric professionals to inform sound development planning in Africa. Econometrics is an application of statistical methods that uses economic theory, mathematics, and statistical inference to quantify economic phenomena; effectively turning theoretical economic models into useful tools that inform a country’s economic policymaking….

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Liquid Dataport
NewsTechnology
James Wambua

Liquid unveils 3,800Km Mombasa-DRC fibre link

Liquid Dataport, a business of Liquid Intelligent Technologies has launched its newest fibre route connecting Mombasa on the Indian Ocean to Muanda, a coastal town on the Atlantic Ocean in the DRC. The 3,800km route marks a new era in East-West connectivity on the continent, adding to Liquid’s One Africa Digital Network, which now covers about 110,000Km. The fibre link will be the shortest route connecting East to West Africa and is expected to cut data transmission latency by 20 milliseconds. The Mombasa-Muanda route will help multinationals seeking internet resiliency to avoid the Red Sea and Europe routes, which have become bottlenecks for global internet…

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Dr Joseph Kinyua
CorporateNews
James Wambua

Towering civil servant Joseph Kinyua takes over as KCB Group Chairman

Dr Joseph Kinyua, who easily passes as one of the most competent and trusted official within government circles in Kenya, has taken over as KCB Group Plc Board chairman. KCB Group Plc Board elected FCS Dr Joseph Kinyua, EGH, as the new Chairman of the Group Board with effect from Friday, May 26, 2023. Since 2013, the towering career civil servant had been serving as the Head of Public Service and Secretary to the Cabinet under former President Uhuru Kenyatta. Dr Kinyua joined the regional lender in March this year when he was appointed to the Board of KCB Group. He takes over as Group…

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CBK Cash
FeaturedNews
James Wambua

When taxes don’t make business sense

With a scheduled touchdown of 12 midnight at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, I knew I will have problems finding my way to Ndenderu, Kiambu County, in the dead of the night.  So upon getting that “Karibu nyumbani” alert from Safaricom, and going through the arrival immigration checks by tired-looking officers, I stepped out on the cold tarmac to get a taxi home. “Boss, unaelekea wapi?,” a trio of taxi drivers, keen to secure a late-night deal, shove each other mobbing me at the arrivals section. Years of technological advances and the rise of digital ride hailing applications have done little to change…

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KCB Group Q1 Profit dips
CorporateNews
James Wambua

KCB doubles loan loss provision to Sh4.1 billion as profit dips

KCB has nearly doubled its cover for bad loans to Kes4.1 billion in the period that ended March as the regional lender’s net profit for the first quarter this year dipped to Kes9.75 billion from Kes9.85 billion in March 2022. The lender said increased credit risk and the impact of forex devaluation in Kenya was presenting a challenging operating environment that has greatly impaired the quality of its assets. In the period, KCB Group’s gross non-performing loans jumped by 34.8 percent to Kes176.5 billion from Kes130.9 billion in March 2022. The bank’s loan book expanded by 31.9 percent to close the quarter at Kes928.8 billion…

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