Otiato Guguyu, Author at Newsroom by Maudhui

Shifting the debt from universities to students

Over the past few years, the government has been underfunding university education, leading to a financial crisis that has brought Kenya to a critical juncture. According to the Differentiated Unit Cost (DUC) funding model, the government had committed to covering 80 percent of the financial needs of students who scored the mandatory C+ grade in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exams. However, in practice, the government was only disbursing 48 percent of the required funds, as it aimed to fully support all students. Unfortunately, this has led to a reduction in government funding for universities and a decrease in self-sponsored student enrollments. Today,…

Climate

October 23, 2023November 8, 2023 Otiato Guguyu

Kenya is ready for a deposit return scheme

I remember as a child my father used to keep a crate of soda bottles in a store somewhere waiting for Christmas celebration or when one of us excelled in school where we would be treated to the sugar rush. On such occasions we would dig out the dusty bottles, clean them of cockroach limbs that had died on a mission impossible to enjoy the sugar stuck at the glass bottom before we returned them to the shopkeeper. Failure to which we had to deposit Kes10 until we returned the bottle. However, today with the rise of convenient plastic, it has become easier to buy a

Brands

October 21, 2023December 5, 2023 Otiato Guguyu

The future of journalism

I recently experienced one of the most profound moments in my life. I was sitting in a classroom where two of the trainers teaching journalists how to cope beyond newsrooms had been the managers who hired me into the profession. Mr David Aduda hired me at Nation Media Group (NMG) a decade ago. Some years later, Mr Joseph Odindo poached me to Standard Media Group in 2016. But, they were now both with the Aga Khan University Hospital Media Graduate School that was giving sponsored training to the scores of journalists rendered redundant by the decline of the media industry. I muscled into journalism as…

News

October 20, 2023November 20, 2023 Otiato Guguyu

Happy branding wanted

The sad crease on Kenyan faces and that scowl of anger are making them spend less on consumables slowing down consumption and economic growth. According to Pierrine Consulting, a market research firm, only half of Nairobi residents, and by extension, Kenyans, report feeling unhappy, which is bad for businesses. These disheartened individuals believe their economic situation has worsened over the past six months, primarily due to soaring prices of goods, inadequate leadership, and smaller paychecks. Factors such as job losses and the adverse effects of weather on crops and livestock further contribute to Kenyans’ gloomy outlook. As a consequence, Kenyans are cutting back on expenditures,…

Economy News

October 19, 2023November 20, 2023 Otiato Guguyu

Black tax hit Kenyans as State switches up service fees

The government is reviewing old laws to increase charges for bureaucratic services in an effort to generate more revenue from ministries, departments, and agencies, popularly known as “appropriation in aid” (AIA). National Treasury, as well as the Ministries of Ports, Lands, and Housing, have all turned to existing legislation to raise charges for services in an attempt to collect more funds to support their operations. The government is committed to increasing revenues and has set higher targets for ministries, departments, and agencies to generate funds from fees, fines, and levies. This will result in higher costs for accessing state services. Already, the Ministry of Lands…

Markets News

October 18, 2023November 20, 2023 Otiato Guguyu

CMA has full powers to prosecute company boards

The directors of Uchumi Supermarket will face the Capital Markets Authority again, after the Court of Appeal overturned a Justice George Odunga Ruling that had set them free. The court ruled that CMA has the full mandate to punish errant board members saying the judge had erred by assessing the regulators case as a criminal case as opposed to an administrative action. Three Uchumi directors, Joyce Ogundo, James Murigu and Barth Ragalo had rushed to court to stop the CMA from punishing them for “having only sat at Uchumi board”. The High Court judge agreed to stop the case on grounds that the charges were…

Corporate Economy Markets

October 13, 2023November 8, 2023 Otiato Guguyu

ABSA stocks index plagued by dollar shortages

In 2023, nearly one-third of the capital markets monitored in the Absa Africa Financial Markets Index experienced capital outflows, significantly affecting their performance. Among the affected countries were Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda, Ghana, Egypt, Cote d’Ivoire, and Madagascar, all of which saw their stock market scores decline due to forex depreciation. The increasing interest rates in developed countries have led to a withdrawal of dollars from emerging economies. Simultaneously, these emerging economies are grappling with substantial dollar loan repayments, driving up demand for the greenback. As a result, local currencies and stock market capitalization have depreciated. Rising interest rates In response to these challenges, authorities are

Counties News

October 13, 2023November 20, 2023 Otiato Guguyu

Govt will buy only 2 percent of maize from target farmers at Kes4,000

The government will purchase maize solely from farmers registered with the state, as Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi announced limited procurement by the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB). CS Linturi mentioned that the government would acquire only one million bags of maize at Kes4,000 per bag, as earlier projected at Maudhui House. However, they will restrict this purchase to a selected list of farmers. According to the government, farmers will produce 44 million bags of maize, meaning the government will only purchase approximately two percent of the available produce. The competition for state-subsidized maize sales was set to intensify due to the importation of…

Counties News

October 11, 2023November 20, 2023 Otiato Guguyu

Edward Ouko stumbles on Natembeya’s shortcut to prosperity

Sometimes you can read a judge’s temperament and almost predict the direction of their ruling from their analysis of a case. On other occasions, rarely, you can tell from the way they lay out the arguments before them. So, when Justice Anthony Mrima read a petitioner’s learned counsel Mr Obondi’s opening submission he quoted the lawyer for citing the workmanship of Philosophers Aristotle and Plato to uphold the rule of law and the social contract. Former Auditor-General Edward Ouko But for his opponent, Trans Nzoia County lawyer, the judge said Mr Simiyu cited a litany of laws including the constitution, Public Finance Management Act, County…

From roads to noodles soup; how China is shifting to ‘small is good’

The lines between the rich and those with low income in Kenya are being re-drawn by an ancient phenomenon called inflation, and no clear marker can be seen than on our roads, laced with thin traffic because of rising fuel prices. Many have questioned whether or not the government re-introduced subsidies on fuel rather than why, but going by the vacant petrol stations and clear traffic, it is not hard to see that consumption has simply dipped, and further hikes were simply out of our elastic limits. It is a consolation for me, when once in a while, I can afford to come to town,…