Category: Business Daily

Cross-border traders, Kenyans in the diaspora, and multinationals are increasingly using stablecoins for payments, setting the stage for wider adoption of digital assets in everyday finance in Kenya.

Kenya made Sh426.4 billion ($3.3 billion) worth of transactions in stablecoins in the year to June 2024, according to Chainalysis, a New York-based blockchain data platform that tracks crypto use.

Kenya’s fertiliser imports have dropped for the second straight year, signalling a cooling of the government’s subsidy programme that drove record shipments in 2023 and stood at the heart of President William Ruto’s food security agenda.

Data by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows that the country imported 443,701 tonnes of fertiliser between January and June 2025, valued at nearly Sh25.63 billion, down from 445,857 tonnes worth Sh27.71 billion in the same period of 2024.

A group of 132 staff of the Kenya Medical Research Institute (Kemri), including research scientists, has escalated their fight for equal pay to the Court of Appeal, challenging an Employment and Labour Relations Court decision that dismissed their discrimination claims regarding special allowances paid to medical doctors.

Their claim relates to entitlement to five allowances totalling Sh201,000 monthly. Central to the legal dispute is a claim that only 268 of Kemri’s 931 employees were receiving these benefits.

Kiru, Michi and Chinga tea factories netted the highest prices at the maiden orthodox tea held about a fortnight ago, disclosures show.

Records from the regional auction in Mombasa showed that tea from Kiru, which is located in Mathioya, Murang’a County, fetched the highest price at $3.87 (Sh500.15) a kilo during the sale, followed by Michi $3.77 (Sh487.23), Chinga $3.76 (Sh485.94), and Kagwe $3.70 (Sh478.18).

Africa’s urban centres are expanding at an unprecedented pace. By 2050, they’re projected to welcome nearly a billion new residents. This explosive growth presents tremendous opportunities and significant challenges.

While cities serve as engines of economic progress, they often develop in ways that exclude large segments of their populations through rising costs and poor planning. Designing urban expansion with inclusivity in mind can help solve this problem.

The foundation for inclusive cities begins with thoughtful land management. When cities treat land purely as a commodity, prices inevitably rise beyond what most residents can afford. Kigali, for example, offers a compelling alternative through its leasehold system, where the government maintains ownership while issuing long-term usage rights.

This approach stabilises land values, prevents speculative bubbles, and ensures development benefits the entire community rather than just wealthy investors.

Housing policy represents another critical lever for inclusion.

The traditional model-or default-of isolated luxury developments alongside neglected slums serves no one’s long-term interests and is, at best, lacking strategy.

In fast developing economies, we have seen new developments that demonstrate the power of mixed-income communities, where affordable units are integrated into market-rate developments. Such projects create vibrant, diverse neighbourhoods while giving lower-income residents access to better services and opportunities.

Transportation systems also often reveal a city’s true priorities. While, for instance, Lagos’ BRT network initially focused on wealthier corridors, Addis Ababa’s light rail system was designed from the outset to serve all residents with flat, affordable fares.

Well-planned public transit helps bridge economic divides by connecting people to jobs, education, and services regardless of their neighbourhood or income level.

The ‘informal economy’ still employs the majority of urban Africans, yet many cities treat street vendors and market traders as problems rather than assets.

Upgrading rather than removing informal commercial spaces can preserve livelihoods while improving safety and sanitation. Smart cities recognise that informality often represents rational adaptation to economic realities, not something to be eradicated.

When allocating limited municipal resources, basic infrastructure in underserved areas delivers more value than showcase projects. A good example is Dar es Salaam’s decision to prioritise water and sanitation in informal settlements which dramatically improved living conditions for thousands. This approach demonstrates how targeted investments in fundamentals can uplift entire communities.

The time for incremental change has passed. African cities need bold, comprehensive approaches to urban development that place inclusion and affordability at the centre.

The solutions-and successful examples-exist. What’s needed now is the collective will to implement them at scale across the continent’s rapidly growing urban landscapes.

Community engagement also produces better outcomes than top-down decision making. In Zambia, when residents of informal settlements mapped their own neighborhoods and guided upgrade plans, the results reflected actual needs rather than bureaucratic assumptions.

Although technology implementations often bypass the urban poor, they don’t have to.

Simple modernisation tools – like prepaid utility meters – bring reliable service to previously excluded neighborhoods, proving that innovation can expand rather than restrict access.

True smart city initiatives should be judged by their ability to serve marginalized communities, not just technological sophistication.

The costs of exclusion manifests in strained social systems and reduced economic potential. For example, Johannesburg’s stark inequalities have resulted in creating massive expenditures on private security and lost productivity. In contrast, cities that prioritize inclusion benefit from greater social stability and shared prosperity.

Creating inclusive cities isn’t easy – it requires thoughtfulness, innovation, and coordinated action across multiple fronts. The approaches I have mentioned are being tested and proven across African cities.

The challenge now lies in scaling them systematically. Municipal leaders have both the tools and successful examples to guide action.

The coming decade of urban growth presents an opportunity to build differently; more intentionally, with technology and governance integrated into master plans, and focused on creating cities that work for all their residents.

Kenya’s recent upgrade by S and P Global Ratings from B- to B is more than a technical adjustment, it’s a turning point in the country’s economic story.

As Kenya edges closer to joining Botswana, Mauritius and Morocco among Africa’s investment-grade economies, the ripple effects are already being felt: Eurobond yields have dropped by 0.6 percent, unlocking an estimated $220 million in potential savings on debt service.

The Court of Appeal has affirmed a decision directing Suntra Investment Bank and Custody and Registrars Services to restore to a British family 99,100 shares of East African Breweries Plc (EABL) that were fraudulently sold by an imposter in 2007.

A bench of three judges upheld the High Court finding of negligence on the part of two firms and said the court rightly directed the two firms to restore the securities to the estate of Anthony William Bentley-Buckle who died in 2010 after retiring to his home in Hampshire in the UK. The shares have a current market value of Sh21.2 million.

A Canadian investor has sold stock brokerage firm Kestrel Capital to a company backed by its management team, making it the latest deal in Kenya’s stockbroking business amid a market upturn.

Charles Field-Marsham will cede ownership to Theo Capital Holdings – which is owned by eight individuals including Kestrel CEO Francis Mwangi – for an undisclosed amount.

The state-owned Postal Corporation of Kenya (PCK) is seeking approval from the National Treasury to sell part of its dormant assets, mainly land, to clear liabilities amounting to Sh7.2 billion and attract a strategic investor to revive its operations.

The corporation’s total assets are valued at about Sh11.2 billion, with land accounting for Sh7.9 billion, including a prime parcel at Nairobi’s Yaya Centre.

In a land dispute that lasted almost 30 years, Kenya Breweries Ltd (KBL) has been granted a reprieve against the Mombasa County Government after a court declared the company’s certificate of lease on the land is valid and still in force.

The Environment and Land Court also ruled that the re-planning and subdivision of KBL’s land in Tudor, conducted by the county government to create other parcels, was illegal, null and void.