Category: Business Daily

The Eldoret International Airport exceeded targets for annual customs revenue collections for the financial year to June 2025, marking a rebound from the previous financial year when cargo flights were temporarily grounded following a stalemate over a new taxation system.

The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) collected Sh1.8 billion at the Eldoret facility against a target of Sh1.694 billion, surpassing the target by 6.44 percent, or Sh109.06 million.

When was the last time you stepped into a library? Or are you more of an ‘is there a PDF version?’ kind of person? It’s not really your fault, we live in a digital age built on convenience. But it does make you wonder: what happens to libraries?

That’s where today’s How to Build a Library comes in.

How to Build a Library is a 2025 Kenyan-American documentary directed by Maia Lekow and Christopher King. It follows Shiro Koinange and Angela Wachuka as they work to restore the McMillan Memorial Library in Nairobi, turning what was once a not-so-well-maintained, forgotten colonial building into a hub for readers. The film will open the 6th edition of the NBO Film Festival, running from October 16-26, 2025, at Prestige Cinema, with additional screenings at Kaloleni Social Hall, Docubox, and Unseen Nairobi.

The festival, as always, focuses on Kenyan and African stories that rarely make it to mainstream screens. Now you know where and when to see it, back to the review.

Red flags

Going in, I had little to no expectations. I knew very little about the project, so by the 15-minute mark, a few red flags started popping up.

First, I saw a foundation logo. That usually translates to aligning with a narrative that aligns with that organisation. Then I noticed it was co-directed by a woman and starred women. That has never been a problem, in fact, I condone it. The issue is what that combination tends to signal in modern storytelling.

From what I’ve seen, especially in projects like this, representation often outweighs good storytelling. Weak scripts and ideas still get greenlit as long as they tick what a few people in a boardroom deem as the right social boxes. So yes, I was worried when a couple of frames lingered unnecessarily on random women in the audience for no apparent reason.

Then came the second red flag, a foreign co-director. And again, this has nothing to do with race but with exploitation. Every time I see a foreigner behind the camera in stories from developing countries, I brace myself.

Too often, they show up to tell what they think is an ‘important story,’ collect festival praise, make their money, and disappear. You see it every day on YouTube. Cultural vulturism, profiting off local struggles for credibility. So when I saw a foreign name attached to the project, I was very sceptical.

What worked

But 20 minutes in, I realised I might have been wrong. How to Build a Library is a well-crafted, layered documentary. It spans about five to six years, following Shiro Koinange and Angela Wachuka as they attempt to revive McMillan Memorial Library and its branches in Kaloleni and Makadara.

The timespan alone is impressive, you move through 2017, into the pandemic years, and finally get a glimpse of the events of 2024. It feels like a time capsule, with small, subtle details marking each era.

There’s also historical depth in the storytelling. When the old black-and-white photos and archival clips appear, you’re transported back to colonial Kenya. Those images, portraits, and documents, many hidden for decades, those small moments speak volumes, especially for anyone interested in the country’s history. The library becomes both a time machine and a metaphor.

From the outside, McMillan looks grand. Step inside, and you find decay, neglect, and bureaucracy. The metaphor couldn’t be clearer. Like the McMillan building, Kenya, too, looks fine from the outside.

But as a citizen, you know and see the cracks and decay. Anyone who tries to fix anything here runs into red tape and political egos. The film captures that perfectly. You see it in the behaviours of some librarians, entitled, stubborn, and oddly reflective of our politicians.

People who cling to status even as their institutions collapse. Whether intentional or not, that parallel is perfect.

Technically, the cinematography is grounded and natural. The lighting, colour, and audio stay consistent from 2017 through 2024. You barely notice the passage of time. Nothing feels overproduced or staged.

The dialogue sounds real, crisp, and unfiltered, with natural switches between English, Swahili and Sheng. No one’s performing for the camera, well, apart from one or two scenes that feel a bit off.

I also liked the chemistry between Shiro and Wachuka. There’s a sense of purpose in everything they do. They’re articulate, focused, and committed. You follow them through bureaucracy, funding challenges, and people politics. You see their frustrations, their small wins, and their big moments.

What’s missing, though, is who they are beyond the mission. We get glimpses, a hearing issue here, a pet lover there, something around a necklace, but never a full sense of the people behind the passion. I wanted more humanity, less logistics.

Another thing I appreciated is how the film captures the concept of taking action. These women saw a problem, recognised their passion, and jumped in. Even with all the challenges, they pushed forward. Sometimes small, almost crazy steps can spark something much bigger. And when you look at what they’ve managed to achieve, you can’t help but feel inspired.

Also, let’s be honest, the film makes libraries look cool again. Beyond being a storage for knowledge, they come off as living, breathing community spaces.

It’s also a short, tight experience at only 96 minutes, which works in its favour.

What didn’t work

The film’s biggest weakness is the locations orientation. It never explicitly establishes the libraries visually, where they sit geographically or what they mean to their communities, it’s only implied.

McMillan is at the heart of Nairobi, one of the city’s most recognisable landmarks, yet we never get a wide top-down shot of the building or even a map showing its relation to the city and surrounding buildings.

The same goes for Makadara and Kaloleni. We hear about them, explore the interior, meet a few people, but the social and economic context feels thin.

The second issue is focus. The documentary tries to cover too much: bureaucracy, restoration, politics, colonial history, personal stories, and even African literary culture. It’s ambitious, but without a clear through-line connecting everything.

Then there’s the pacing. While the editing is timely, sharp, and clean, the rhythm is flat. No real highs or lows, it just coasts. There’s no build-up or release; it flows evenly from start to finish. That lack of variation makes the 96 minutes feel longer than it actually is.

The tone also plays it too safe. The film celebrates the women’s journey, which is fine, but it rarely challenges them or the viewer. It never lets moral or ideological tension surface. Everything is framed as a path to something, with only glimpses of struggle.

Great documentaries provoke thought, they make you uncomfortable, they question motives, they dig into contradictions. This one doesn’t quite go there.

By the end, when the text appears about the current state of McMillan Library, everything I had just watched felt like a pitch rather than a full story.

I also thought the last six minutes were unnecessary. Yes, the events were monumental for the country, but compared to the rest of the film, they feel tacked on, more like an afterthought influenced by outside pressure than a natural conclusion.

The title, should’ve been How to Rebuild a Library or How to Restore a Library. ‘Build’ feels misleading given the story’s actual focus.

Final thoughts

That said, How to Build a Library is still worth watching. It’s short, polished, and genuinely inspiring. You follow two women who cared enough to fix something most people overlook. Based on the ending, it’s safe to assume they’re still on that journey.

It may not be groundbreaking, but it’s honest, hopeful, and quietly powerful, a snapshot of what action, persistence, and love for culture can achieve. You know where to see it.

The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has withheld dividends to the Treasury for the first time in seven years despite declaring a surplus of Sh65.8 billion, hurting State revenues.

The banking regulator retained profits in the race to increase capital to Sh100 billion ahead of 2027, up from Sh60 billion.

I’ve been reading The Power of a Positive No: Save the Deal Save the Relationship – and Still Say No by William Ury, the author of the earlier bestseller, Getting to Yes.

Ury is an experienced mediator, at levels from the corporate to the national, and he is a co-founder of the Harvard Law School Negotiation Programme. I found his writing very helpful. just as I do the related Disagreeing Well initiative at University College London, where I was an undergraduate.

Kenya’s recent decision to begin repaying part of its loans to China in yuan rather than US dollars marks a quiet but powerful shift in how the country manages its external finances.

This move is not just about debt repayment mechanics-it’s a deliberate, forward-looking step toward fiscal prudence, economic flexibility, and a stronger strategic partnership with China.

For years, Kenya and many other developing nations have faced the challenge of managing dollar-denominated debt. Every time the US Federal Reserve adjusts its interest rates, the ripple effects reach Nairobi.

The strengthening of the dollar often translates into higher repayment costs, depreciating local currencies, and tighter budgets. Kenya’s pivot to the yuan is, therefore, both practical and timely – it is about aligning with a more stable, predictable, and mutually beneficial system.

By servicing its Chinese loans in yuan, Kenya is expected to save roughly Sh26.4 billion annually in interest and exchange costs.

This is a substantial financial relief that can support domestic priorities such as infrastructure maintenance, healthcare investment, and job creation.

In an economy where every shilling counts, the ability to redirect hundreds of millions in savings toward development is no small achievement.

But this decision is about more than numbers. It is about economic sovereignty. The yuan arrangement reduces Kenya’s dependence on the dollar and spreads currency risk more evenly across its external obligations.

When debt is diversified across multiple currencies, the government can manage fluctuations effectively and protect public finances from global shocks. The yuan, with its growing international usage and stability, offers a viable and forward-looking option.

This approach also reflects the natural evolution of Kenya’s relationship with China.

Over the past two decades, Beijing has become Nairobi’s largest bilateral lender and a key development partner, supporting transformative infrastructure projects like the standard gauge railway, major highways, and renewable energy installations.

Using yuan for repayment aligns seamlessly with the scale and depth of this partnership. It reduces unnecessary conversion costs, simplifies transactions, and enhances financial efficiency in bilateral trade.

Kenya’s embrace of the yuan is not just a financial adjustment – it is a statement of confidence in a multipolar world.

It affirms the country’s commitment to prudent economic management, global partnership, and national self-determination. In an era of shifting financial power, Kenya has chosen progress over passivity – and that makes all the difference.

Beyond Kenya, the use of the yuan in international finance is gaining momentum. Countries across Asia, the Middle East, and Africa are increasingly incorporating the Chinese currency into their trade and financial systems.

This shift reflects confidence in China’s economic strength and stability, as well as recognition of the yuan’s growing role as a global reserve and settlement currency. Kenya’s adoption of this model therefore positions it ahead of the curve – as part of an emerging network of economies that are embracing multipolar financial cooperation.

Importantly, Kenya’s decision is not about rejecting the dollar but about broadening options.

Economic diversification, in all its forms, is the cornerstone of resilience. Just as a well-balanced investment portfolio spreads risk, a diversified foreign exchange strategy shields the country from single-currency volatility.

By incorporating the yuan into its financial toolkit, Kenya gains more control over its fiscal destiny and builds confidence among international partners that it can adapt to global trends intelligently.

The yuan’s growing accessibility further supports this transition. China has established currency swap arrangements and financial settlement platforms that make yuan transactions easier for its partners.

This means Kenya can access yuan more efficiently, conduct trade smoothly, and repay loans without the friction of converting through third-party currencies. It is a system designed for cooperation and shared benefit.

What Kenya has done is therefore both practical and visionary. It demonstrates that sound economic management involves thinking beyond convention.

For decades, the dollar has been the default global currency, but that dominance has not always served emerging economies well. Kenya’s willingness to innovate – to structure its finances around currencies that complement its trade and development partnerships – shows a maturity that others in the region would do well to emulate.

The implications of this move extend beyond debt repayment. It represents a confident expression of Kenya’s place in a changing global order – one where emerging economies are shaping new financial norms based on cooperation, trust, and shared growth.

By strengthening its monetary ties with China, Kenya signals that it is ready to engage global partners on its own terms, guided by mutual respect and strategic vision.

In the long term, this shift could enhance Kenya’s creditworthiness, reduce exposure to external shocks, and attract new investment from partners who value stability and innovation.

It also reinforces Kenya’s role as a regional economic leader, setting an example for other African nations seeking smarter ways to manage external obligations and unlock fiscal space.

‘When will I afford marriage?’ This has become the quiet question many young professionals, some who are earning six-figure salaries, are asking themselves as they plan their financial futures.

Kevin Karanja, a 37-year-old finance professional, is not married despite having a steady job, decent income, and investments.

Children with blood disorders, including sickle cell anaemia and leukaemia, will soon be able to undergo bone marrow transplants in Kenya, eliminating the need to travel abroad for the procedure.

This follows the establishment of the region’s first paediatric bone marrow transplant centre at Gertrude’s Children’s Hospital in Nairobi.

Kenya needs a minimum of Sh30.45 billion ($235 million) investment to produce biofuel (sustainable aviation fuel) for airlines and replace up to 15 percent of the current jet fuel, according to a study by the World Bank.

The study shows that the funds can be used to set up the Hydrotreated Esters and Fatty Acids (HEFA) facilities that can produce up to 4,000 barrels per day (BPD) of biofuel by refining vegetable oils and waste oils.

An oil marketer has lost its attempt to overturn a Sh578.56 million tax demand from the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) for filing the appeal 10 days out of time.

Evon Energy International Limited had sought the intervention of the Tax Appeals Tribunal to overturn the claim, but all its arguments were thrown out for filing crucial documents past the legally permitted time.

With the long rains here, now is a good time to talk about financing the agricultural sector, the sufficient lack of which continues to hinder the sector from unleashing its true transformative potential.

Despite agriculture accounting for 34 percent of the general economy and generating about one out of 10 formal jobs, the sector receives minimal funding. Data from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) shows the agricultural sector received Sh134.2 billion in credit out of the total Sh3,797.5 billion extended to businesses, accounting for just 3.53 percent of the total private sector credit.

Manufacturing accounted for Sh580.2 billion of loans to the private sector, or slightly more than four times what went to agriculture. To be fair to commercial lenders, they are shy about lending to the sector because it is a risky affair.

Last year, Kenya faced its worst flooding in over two decades, and just a year before, the country experienced the most severe drought in 40 years, both of which devastated crops and livestock production.

Still, agriculture is an important sector for the economy because it offers the path of least resistance towards poverty reduction.

After all, increasing productivity is simpler than other sectors. For example, to boost productivity a combination of availing the right seeds, fertilisers, and credit, as we have seen in the maize sub-sector, which hit an estimated record 70 million bags in 2024, up from 48 million bags in 2023 or a 46 percent increase.

This was attributed to the availability and stocking of the right fertilisers and seeds. This bumper harvest is not only creating jobs, but it’s also directly benefiting Kenyans by significantly reducing the price of maize flour, their dietary staple.

The above example is evidence that financing the agricultural sector by providing funds for purchasing quality fertilisers, seeds, pesticides, feeds, and other inputs can have a palpable effect on lives and livelihoods.

However, how can we effectively lend to the sector while managing risks and ensuring returns for lenders? Partnering with companies that are using technology to overcome these hurdles offers a promising solution. Agri-fintechs are such companies. These startups are using technology-driven insights to enable them to better lend to players in the agricultural value chain in better ways than traditional lenders, which even the banking regulator recognises.

The CBK’s November 2024 Agricultural Sector Survey Report highlights an improvement in access to credit for the agricultural sector, attributing this in part to digital lending, which effectively reaches businesses in the agricultural value chain in remote areas lacking brick-and-mortar banks or saccos.

Despite its immense potential for improving lives and livelihoods, the sector is underfunded. Therefore, there is an urgent need for innovative agricultural financing. Partnering with agri-fintech companies offers a promising solution not only for Kenya but also for the rest of Africa.

Agri-fintechs are also more adaptable or malleable to the realities of the agricultural sector value chain. For example, the cash flow cycle for the agricultural sector is different than other sectors.

The lion’s share of funding is often required ahead of the planting season but sales happen after harvesting which is months away.

Even where there are financial products that reflect these dynamics, traditional lenders are more comfortable working with larger firms in the sector and not SMEs, who have relationships, collateral, etc. but these only make up a small percentage of the larger agricultural value chain, leaving many underserved.

Speed is also one area where agritechs have an advantage over other mainstream lenders.

Speed is particularly important because often it can mean the difference between missing an opportunity or making a loss. Agri-fintech solutions facilitate rapid lending decisions, often within days, a crucial advantage given the unpredictable nature of rainfall patterns or market demands.