Category: Business Daily

A Sh622 million revenue dispute between the government and Chinese-owned Bao Gold Hill Kenya Limited over gold mining fields in Narok County has escalated to the Court of Appeal, which has suspended mining activities pending a full hearing.

Equity Bank and Co-operative Bank of Kenya owe the government Sh457 million arising from historical agreements where the State provided funds to the firms for onward lending to businesses, including in the agricultural sector.

The High Court has struck out a tea exporter’s case against the government’s decision to revoke its trading licence, ruling that the dispute should be resolved through statutory appeals under the Tea Act rather than judicial review.

Adoption of electric vehicles has moved beyond pilot phases in Kenya, but gaps in charging infrastructure and the intensive capital required for rollout are emerging as the primary bottlenecks to expansion.

Nzoia Sugar Company has resumed milling operations after a seven-month silence, following a takeover by new owners under lease terms.

Last year opened with a sense of anger and global disorientation that many citizens across continents felt immediately and viscerally. The return of American President Donald Trump to power reshaped diplomatic language, trade expectations, aid architecture, and the emotional climate of insults, disrespect, and international mobility almost overnight.

Kenya’s economy expanded at a faster rate of 4.9 percent in the third quarter of 2025 on rebound in construction and mining activities as well as continued growth in services, which offset weaker agricultural output.

The collapse of buildings in Kenya, exemplified by the recent incident in South C, is driven not solely by the negligence of engineers, but a key underlying issue: material failures and the use of sub-standard construction materials.

Witness accounts and early investigations paint a picture of structural fragility. The building did not topple; it pancaked – a mode of failure where rebar separated from concrete, a sign of poor material integrity.

This observation must drive the investigation beyond individuals and into the market. Which investor, having poured tens or hundreds of millions of shillings into a venture, would cut corners and risk their entire fortune and lives?

We should also question professional competence. Can an experienced architect or engineer knowingly be so reckless as to oversee a project doomed to fail? Construction crews on site should be equipped to identify sub-standard cement, steel or reinforced concrete.

Can the Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs) certify that the materials used in the South C building met the minimum quality standards?

The lynching of the technical crew, owner and approval officers is a necessary part of accountability for negligence, but it is narrow. This is a decades-long crisis hiding in plain sight.

Authoritative reports have been sounding the alarm for more than a decade. Data from the National Construction Authority (NCA) shows more than 86 building collapsed between 2009 and 2019, with many of the causes being sub-standard cement and steel.

A 2021 NCA audit revealed that 35 per cent of buildings in Kenya are at risk of failure, predominantly due to material shortcomings. Kebs internal reports are equally damning. A 2022 analysis indicated that a staggering three out of five cement samples failed basic strength tests.

To reverse this tide, Kenya must make on-site material testing a non-negotiable legal requirement for projects.

Condemnation must translate into structural reform. For accountability to be truly served, Kebs must release its market surveillance reports on cement and steel for 2020-25.

Maisie is a disabled cat. She cannot move, eat, or relieve herself without help. Her life runs on a strict routine, with her feeding, bathroom breaks, and care scheduled down to the minute. So what happens when her purr-ent needs to travel and cannot take her along?

The High Court has dismissed a legal challenge seeking to halt public participation sessions on a proposed policy by the National Treasury, which is aimed at standardising the valuation of public assets.