Category: Business Daily

14 Riverside owners seek to block Sh10.6bn debt claimCape Holdings is also asking the High Court to declare part of the Banking Act that excludes judgment debtors from protection against runaway interest as unconstitutional, and to determine whether compound interest could lawfully accrue when the arbitral award had been set aside.

The petition stems from a 2015 arbitrator’s decision ordering Cape Holdings to pay Synergy Industrial Credit Sh1.6 billion, plus compound interest at 18 percent annually until payment in full, following a failed property transaction.

The High Court had set aside the arbitral award in 2016, but the Court of Appeal reinstated it in 2020, paving the way for Synergy’s Sh10.6 billion claim.

The new petition also asks the court to determine whether enforcing the debt in its current form disproportionately breaches constitutional property rights and whether interest continued to accrue despite there being no enforceable arbitral award between 2016 and 2020.

The outcome of the petition could extend beyond the high-profile property dispute by reshaping how courts treat judgment debts, compound interest and the enforcement of arbitral awards.

Cape Holdings, together with its directors Vinay Bipinchandra Sanghrajka and Bipinchandra Bhaichand Sanghrajka, filed the petition against Synergy Industrial Credit and the Attorney-General. The directors are concerned because Synergy intends to auction part of their personal properties in recovery of the debt.

Jaysukhlal Bhaichand Sanghrajka has been joined as an interested party because he jointly owns one of the properties affected by the enforcement proceedings.

The petition argues that the current decretal sum of Sh10.68 billion includes about Sh9.01 billion in compound interest. It contends that interest was wrongly charged between March 11, 2016 and November 6, 2020, when the arbitral award had been set aside by the High Court and was therefore incapable of enforcement.

“The Petitioners’ central complaint is that the decretal sum as currently computed and escalating daily purely on account of interest has led to grave, disproportionate, and an unlawful violation of several of the petitioners’ constitutional rights as specified in the petition,” says the advocates of Cape Holdings.

Cape Holdings also challenges Section 44A (4) of the Banking Act, which excludes judgment debtors from the protection of the in duplum principle.

The company argues the exclusion discriminates against judgment debtors and violates constitutional guarantees on equality and protection of property.

The petition further claims enforcement has gone beyond the company’s assets after Synergy obtained prohibitory orders over property jointly owned by the two directors and the interested party in Nairobi’s Spring Valley. It says they have been locked out of the property.

In court papers, Cape says the escalating debt now threatens its Riverside Drive property and raises broader constitutional questions about proportionality, fairness and the limits of debt recovery. The building complex is facing an auction and a separate litigation over the intended sale.

“This case raises several issues that we believe are of significant public interest,” Cape Holdings said.

Most pertinent is the question of whether the legal protection that stops interest from spiralling out of control should extend to all claims for money due, including those enforced through court orders.

The company added: “We fully acknowledge our legal obligations, but the sum being enforced raises serious questions of proportionality and fairness that no court has ever determined on the merits.”

The case is scheduled for directions on June 29, and Cape Holdings wants the case heard on a priority basis.

The dispute traces its roots to a failed agreement for Synergy to buy one block in the 14 Riverside development.

An arbitrator awarded Synergy Sh1.6 billion plus compound interest in January 2015.

Although the High Court initially set aside the award in 2016, the Court of Appeal reinstated it in November 2020 after proceedings that reached the Supreme Court, triggering years of enforcement litigation over the landmark property.

The petitioners’ advocates want the court to determine three novel constitutional questions arising from the enforcement of the decree.

They want the court to decide whether interest could lawfully accrue while the arbitral award had been set aside, whether Section 44A(4) of the Banking Act unconstitutionally excludes judgment debtors from the in duplum rule, and whether enforcing the Sh10.6 billion debt disproportionately limits the petitioners’ constitutional property rights.

Kenya’s imports of information and communication technology (ICT) equipment surged to a record Sh12.45 billion in April, signalling an acceleration in investments in data centres, telecommunications networks and digital infrastructure.

Latest data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows the value of ICT imports more than doubled from Sh5.23 billion in March, marking the highest monthly import bill since the statistical agency began publishing the series.

At the same time, exports of ICT equipment nearly tripled to Sh438.26 million from Sh156.02 million in March, posting the strongest monthly performance since December 2024 when exports stood at Sh548.92 million.

According to KNBS, the import surge was driven largely by purchases of automatic data processing machines and storage units, which jumped almost fourfold to Sh4.97 billion, up from Sh1.31 billion a month earlier.

Imports of telecommunications equipment also more than doubled to Sh6.57 billion from Sh2.56 billion in March.

‘This growth was largely driven by a threefold increase in the import value of automatic data processing machines and storage units, which rose from Sh1.3 billion to Sh5 billion, alongside a twofold increase in imports of telecommunications equipment from Sh2.6 billion to Sh6.6 billion,’ wrote the data agency.

The rise points to growing demand for servers, storage equipment, networking devices, and other digital infrastructure components that underpin cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI) and internet services.

Automatic data processing machines largely refer to servers, enterprise computers, data storage systems and related equipment used in data centres and large corporate networks.

Telecommunications equipment, on the other hand, includes components such as network switches, routers, fiber transmission equipment, mobile base stations, and other infrastructure used by telecom operators and internet providers.

The increase in the value of equipment imported comes as Kenya positions itself as East Africa’s digital infrastructure hub amid rising investments in data centres and cloud computing facilities.

The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) recently formally recognised commercial data centres as a regulated telecommunications activity, a move seen as providing greater regulatory certainty to investors.

The policy change came at a time when developers are pouring billions of shillings into data centre projects targeting AI and cloud services.

India’s Airtel, through its subsidiary Nxtra, is building East Africa’s largest data centre in Nairobi with planned investments estimated at around Sh19 billion. The facility is expected to support growing demand for cloud computing, enterprise storage, and AI services across East and Central Africa.

Kenya is also witnessing expansion by other operators, including iXAfrica, Africa Data Centres and iColo, as global technology firms search for regional digital infrastructure locations.

The government’s own projections suggest the country is increasingly becoming a preferred destination for data centres and AI infrastructure because of its renewable energy potential and strategic location.

The rise in telecommunications equipment imports also points to continued spending by mobile operators and internet service providers as they expand network capacity.

Telecom operators across Africa have been investing heavily in fiber infrastructure, 4G and 5G upgrades, as well as edge computing facilities to cope with rising data demand and AI applications.

The investments are increasingly being driven by cloud services, streaming platforms, and AI-powered applications that require substantially larger computing and storage capabilities than traditional internet services.

Kenya remains almost entirely reliant on imports for servers, storage systems, networking devices and telecommunications infrastructure, meaning that every major expansion in digital infrastructure tends to produce sharp spikes in import bills.

The rise in the value of related exports indicates that Kenya has increasingly emerged as a distribution and logistics centre for technology products entering East and Central Africa.

The categories include re-exports of imported equipment, refurbished devices, network components, and specialised electronic equipment shipped to regional markets.

Several multinational technology companies use Nairobi as a regional base for servicing neighbouring markets. The massive gap between imports and exports, however, underlines a structural weakness in Kenya’s digital economy.

For every shilling earned from exporting ICT equipment in April, for instance, the country imported nearly Sh28 worth of technology products.

Despite ambitions to build a digital economy, Kenya remains overwhelmingly a consumer and importer of technology hardware.

Kenya has kicked off preparations to build a tomb and a mausoleum for the late Raila Odinga in Kang’o ka Jaramogi in Bondo, Siaya County, revealing a mix of unique fittings and features of the facility to be built by the National Museum of Kenya (NMK).

Odinga, a former Prime Minister, long-time opposition leader, and a central figure in Kenya’s post-independence politics, died in October 2025 while receiving treatment in an Indian hospital. He was 80 and was accorded a State funeral.

Proposals seen by the Business Daily revealed that Odinga’s memorial tomb would measure six square metres and be clad in imported Italian Carrara marble– a coveted premium natural stone quarried in the Apuan Alps of Tuscany, Italy.

Carrara has a soft white look with feathery veins and has been used in many globally famous architectural marvels, such as The Pantheon in Rome, the statue of David by Michelangelo, and Marble Arch in London.

‘The entire tomb will be finished with marbles, as per the architects’ drawings and finishes schedule. The entire tomb structure, including horizontal and vertical surfaces, skirtings, copings, edges, shall be cladded with first-class ‘Italian Carrara’ marble,’ NMK said.

The Pantheon in Rome is one of the ancient world’s best preserved monuments, and its structure heavily relied on pristine white Carrara marble from Tuscany to line its exterior and shape its magnificent interior columns.

The iconic Statue of David, a 5.17 metres tall masterpiece by Michelangelo, was also carved from a single block of white Italian Carrara marble. The Statue of David, a biblical hero who slayed the giant Goliath, has been indoors at the Galleria dell’Accademia in Florence since 1873.

Disclosures showed that Odinga’s tomb would be enclosed in a stone-walled structure with a granite floor and would be accessed through a monumental double-leaf carved Lamu hardwood door measuring four metres by four metres.

The mega door would be constructed from seasoned mvule or mahogany hardwood with traditional Swahili or Lamu hand-carved decorative panels, incorporating six-millimeter-thick clear toughened glass infill panels, complete with heavy-duty hinges.

The tomb cubicle would have a bamboo-threaded screen wall.

The Odinga tomb will sit within a freshly built mausoleum whose external walls will be constructed from natural quarry semi-dressed blue stones, cut to block size: bedded and jointed in cement and sand mortar.

The NMK has proposed that the Odinga mausoleum will be fitted with a life-size sculpture of Jowi, a Luo word for a Buffalo. Jowi was Raila’s famous dirge, and he routinely chanted it at funerals.

The Jowi is a traditional Luo mourning chant that symbolises a “buffalo,” representing strength, courage, and fearlessness. In Luo culture, it is reserved exclusively to honor respected leaders, warriors, and elders who have led large, impactful lives and left behind a strong legacy.

NMK said the National Treasury has released funds for the Odinga mausoleum and tomb project, but did not reveal the amount.

A WhatsApp exchange between a supermarket employee and her former employer approving the use of her photograph for advertisements has sunk her claim that the retailer used her image without consent.

Ms Joyce Caroline Munjiru wanted the High Court in Thika to declare that Muhindi Mweusi Supermarket Limited breached her rights to privacy and dignity by using her image in Facebook posts and billboard advertisements.

However, the court dismissed her claim after finding that she had consented to the use of her image in a promotional campaign through written consent reinforced by a WhatsApp conversation with the retailer.

The court ruled that she failed to prove Muhindi Mweusi breached her constitutional rights to privacy and dignity by displaying her photograph on Facebook and a roadside billboard after she left its employment.

The court found that written consent signed by Ms Munjiru was reinforced by WhatsApp exchanges showing she approved the final image before it appeared in the company’s advertising campaign.

The ruling highlights the growing role of digital communications as evidence in employment and privacy disputes, particularly where parties contest consent for the commercial use of personal images.

Consent dispute

Besides seeking a declaration that the supermarket breached her constitutional rights by continuing to use her likeness after she resigned, Ms Munjiru also sought a permanent injunction barring the company from using her image in future advertisements.

She also sought general damages and Sh800,000 in compensation for the alleged breach of her constitutional right to privacy.

She told the court she had worked for the supermarket until August 2023 before resigning. According to her evidence, she later instructed the company to stop using photographs bearing her image because she was receiving no financial benefit while the business continued to profit from the advertisements.

She testified that the supermarket retained her image on its Facebook page despite her objections before removing it only after receiving a demand letter from her advocates on October 19, 2023.

She also told the court the company erected a prominent billboard at Witeithie along the Nairobi-Thika Highway on September 18, 2023, displaying her photograph without her permission. The billboard was later removed after her lawyers intervened.

During cross-examination, however, Ms Munjiru disputed the signatures appearing on documents produced by the supermarket, insisting she never signed a consent letter authorising the use of her image. She alleged the signatures had been forged.

Her husband supported her account, telling the court she had sought compensation for the use of her photographs, but negotiations with the supermarket failed.

WhatsApp evidence

The supermarket denied breaching her rights and maintained that she voluntarily agreed to participate in its promotional campaign.

Its operations manager, Simon Karanja, testified that the company formally sought Ms Munjiru’s consent on August 23, 2023, before using her photographs in social media posts and related promotional materials.

He told the court she signed the consent documents, attended a professional photoshoot and later approved the final billboard artwork sent to her through WhatsApp before it was printed.

‘The plaintiff returned a message to the effect that it was okay,’ the judge said while summarising the WhatsApp exchange relied upon by the supermarket.

The company further argued that she never withdrew her consent before the advertisements were published and that it removed the Facebook posts and billboard immediately after receiving the demand letter from her advocates.

It also told the court it incurred losses after terminating the billboard campaign early and commissioning replacement advertising material.

Burden failed

In the judgment, the court found that the plaintiff failed to discharge the burden of proving that she had not consented to the use of her image.

‘I have noted that the plaintiff argued that the signatures in the two letters were not hers and were forged. He who alleges must prove,’ the judge said.

The court noted that although Ms Munjiru alleged forgery, she did not produce handwriting expert evidence to challenge the authenticity of the signatures.

It also found that she did not deny that the WhatsApp number through which the final image was approved belonged to her or that she used it at the material time.

‘It is my considered view that the plaintiff gave her consent for her images to be used for the defendant’s business promotion,’ the judge said.

‘The plaintiff, having given written consent, ought to have withdrawn the consent in writing.’

The court further found that the supermarket used the photographs only for the purposes outlined in the consent documents, namely Facebook promotions and related advertising materials, including the roadside billboard.

Having found that Ms Munjiru failed to prove the absence of consent or any violation of her constitutional rights, the court dismissed the suit with costs in favour of the supermarket.

Thika Coffee Mills has lost its bid to recover more than $253,000 (Sh32.6 million) from a farmers’ cooperative society after the High Court found that its lending model trapped growers in a cycle of debt through a loan arrangement the judge declared harsh, unconscionable and oppressive.

At the same time, Buchana Coffee Growers Cooperative Society lost its counterclaim for $45,212 (Sh5 million) against the miller after failing to prove the losses and damages it sought.

The court ruled that the coffee miller had already recovered substantially all the money it had advanced to the cooperative and could not continue pursuing additional payments.

The dispute arose from a crop advance agreement signed in June 2014 after the cooperative appointed Thika Coffee Mills as its sole miller, crop developer and marketing agent.

Under the three-year agreement, the miller advanced the society $92,392 (Sh11.9 million) at an annual interest rate of 18 percent, with repayment to be made through deductions from coffee sale proceeds. The company also held a lien over all coffee delivered by the cooperative until the debt was cleared.

Triple role

Thika Coffee Mills accused the cooperative and its officials of breaching the agreement by diverting coffee to another processor, Sasini Limited, instead of delivering it for milling and marketing as agreed.

It claimed the diversion deprived it of the security underpinning the loan and sought $253,156, comprising the principal and accrued interest. It also sought an injunction compelling the cooperative to deliver all future coffee harvests until the debt was fully settled.

The miller said the cooperative’s officials allegedly colluded with licensing authorities to obtain movement permits allowing the coffee to be delivered to another entity, effectively depriving Thika Coffee Mills of its investment.

It said that although the defendants acknowledged the debt of $92,392 and promised to pay, they later sought a full waiver of the amount in a letter dated June 12, 2019.

However, the cooperative denied liability and argued that the company had abused its dominant position by acting simultaneously as lender, miller and marketer.

It told the court that the arrangement gave the company complete control over coffee proceeds while forcing the society into repeated borrowing after recovering earlier loans much faster than agreed. It argued that the company’s claim was based on unfair, coercive and unlawful practices.

The court accepted that argument after reviewing the evidence presented during the trial.

‘It was not disputed that the plaintiff occupied a triple role of miller, marketer and financier, making them the controller of the entire coffee value chain,’ the court said.

It found that the company recovered an earlier loan worth $122,952.88 in 13 months instead of the agreed three years, creating a cash-flow crisis that forced the cooperative to take additional loans.

Debt trap

Titus Ndung’u Machanga, the mills accountant at Thika Coffee Mills, testified that the company had recovered $383,467.57 (Sh49.5 million), comprising principal of $92,392.23 (Sh11.9 million) and interest of $291,575.30 (Sh37.6 million).

He maintained that the cooperative still owed $565,547 (Sh73 million), including the original principal and $473,154.77 (Sh61.0 million) in accrued interest.

‘This is clearly outrageous and unconscionable, and it would appear that the structure of the loans was designed to keep the society perpetually indebted,’ the judge said.

The court said the evidence showed the company had advanced about $559,093 through nine loans and recovered about $543,022.

It ruled that continuing to pursue another $253,156.79 was disproportionate because the company had already been substantially compensated.

‘In my view, this is not a case of a farmer borrowing and refusing to repay, but a case of a powerful miller entrapping a cooperative society in a cycle of debt,’ the judge said.

‘I am in agreement with the defendants that the interest rate of 18 percent per annum in the coffee sector context, where farmers receive proceeds annually rather than monthly, was predatory and designed to keep the society permanently in debt,’ the judge added.

The court also found that the company knew the cooperative’s borrowing limits required approval by members but still advanced loans exceeding those limits without producing evidence that the necessary resolutions had been obtained.

It further found that the miller exercised extensive control over coffee movement permits and coffee proceeds while recovering loans from farmers who had not benefited from the financing programme.

Failed counterclaim

The cooperative had sought to rescind the agreement, demanded accounts and claimed damages, arguing that the company converted individual farmers’ liabilities into debts owed by the entire society and failed to account for coffee sales and returned farm chemicals.

The court rejected those claims, saying the defendants had not produced sufficient evidence to justify damages and had themselves accepted advances from the company.

In their statement of defence, the cooperative said the miller introduced an Improve Production, Improve Quality (IPIQ) programme for farm chemicals and inputs, under which 483 members subscribed and received $122,952 worth of chemicals.

The cooperative said that instead of recovering the loan over the agreed three years, the miller recovered it in full during the first year by charging the society’s account.

The ruling comes as the government audits historical debts owed by coffee cooperative societies as part of wider reforms in the sector.

Cooperatives Cabinet Secretary Wycliffe Oparanya recently said only verified liabilities would qualify for settlement after an audit found that many claims could not be substantiated.

Kenya has kicked off preparations to build a tomb and a mausoleum for the late Raila Odinga in Kang’o ka Jaramogi in Bondo, Siaya County, revealing a mix of unique fittings and features of the facility to be built by the National Museum of Kenya (NMK).

Odinga, a former Prime Minister, long-time opposition leader, and a central figure in Kenya’s post-independence politics, died in October 2025 while receiving treatment in an Indian hospital. He was 80 and was accorded a State funeral.

Proposals seen by the Business Daily revealed that Odinga’s memorial tomb would measure six square metres and be clad in imported Italian Carrara marble– a coveted premium natural stone quarried in the Apuan Alps of Tuscany, Italy.

Carrara has a soft white look with feathery veins and has been used in many globally famous architectural marvels, such as The Pantheon in Rome, the statue of David by Michelangelo, and Marble Arch in London.

‘The entire tomb will be finished with marbles, as per the architects’ drawings and finishes schedule. The entire tomb structure, including horizontal and vertical surfaces, skirtings, copings, edges, shall be cladded with first-class ‘Italian Carrara’ marble,’ NMK said.

The Pantheon in Rome is one of the ancient world’s best preserved monuments, and its structure heavily relied on pristine white Carrara marble from Tuscany to line its exterior and shape its magnificent interior columns.

The iconic Statue of David, a 5.17 metres tall masterpiece by Michelangelo, was also carved from a single block of white Italian Carrara marble. The Statue of David, a biblical hero who slayed the giant Goliath, has been indoors at the Galleria dell’Accademia in Florence since 1873.

Disclosures showed that Odinga’s tomb would be enclosed in a stone-walled structure with a granite floor and would be accessed through a monumental double-leaf carved Lamu hardwood door measuring four metres by four metres.

The mega door would be constructed from seasoned mvule or mahogany hardwood with traditional Swahili or Lamu hand-carved decorative panels, incorporating six-millimeter-thick clear toughened glass infill panels, complete with heavy-duty hinges.

The tomb cubicle would have a bamboo-threaded screen wall.

The Odinga tomb will sit within a freshly built mausoleum whose external walls will be constructed from natural quarry semi-dressed blue stones, cut to block size: bedded and jointed in cement and sand mortar.

Read: As Kenya mourns, Raila Odinga’s final chapter begins

The NMK has proposed that the Odinga mausoleum will be fitted with a life-size sculpture of Jowi, a Luo word for a Buffalo. Jowi was Raila’s famous dirge, and he routinely chanted it at funerals.

The Jowi is a traditional Luo mourning chant that symbolises a “buffalo,” representing strength, courage, and fearlessness. In Luo culture, it is reserved exclusively to honor respected leaders, warriors, and elders who have led large, impactful lives and left behind a strong legacy.

NMK said the National Treasury has released funds for the Odinga mausoleum and tomb project, but did not reveal the amount.

Trade and regulatory arbitrage are becoming the new frontier for grand corruption in Kenya. Consider what Parliament has just done to the sugar industry.

Under the populist banner of “protecting local millers and sugarcane farmers,” the Finance Act 2026 aggressively increases excise duty on imported finished table sugar from Sh7.50 to a punishing Sh40 per kilogramme.

Conversely, sugar imported as raw-and therefore classified as an “industrial raw material for refining”-has been deliberately insulated from these massive tax increases.

Compounding this discrimination, a new East African Community (EAC) Customs Management Gazette has approved duty remissions allowing industrial raw sugar to enter the region at a heavily discounted tariff of just 10 percent for a 12-month window.

This policy architecture is not accidental. It slams the door on open-market table sugar imports-making them prohibitively expensive for ordinary consumers-while leaving a wide-open, lightly monitored backdoor for massive quantities of nominally “raw” sugar.

The big question is this: why are we giving preferential tax treatment to raw sugar when the country’s only local refinery capable of processing it is broken down and mechanically offline?

By doing so, the State has created a lucrative opportunity for cheap, unrefined sugar to leak directly into the retail market, where it will be sold at newly inflated local prices. The stage is set for a manufactured crisis and a massive transfer of wealth from ordinary households to a handful of well-positioned individuals.

Kenya faces a chronic structural deficit, consuming roughly 1.1 million metric tons of sugar annually while producing barely 600,000 tonnes. The domestic market simply cannot bridge that 500,000-tonne gap.

In the coming months, when retail shelves begin to empty and prices spike, the government will inevitably deploy its usual playbook: open an emergency import window. Legitimate importers will bring in expensive, heavily taxed finished table sugar, while politically connected cartels exploit the regulatory backdoor to flood the market with cheap, lightly taxed raw sugar under industrial licenses.

In a functioning economy, these two streams would remain strictly separated. Raw sugar would go directly to a refinery, be processed into edible white sugar, and enter the market legitimately.

However, a recent National Assembly committee investigation blew that convenient myth apart.

When MPs probed a controversial Sh1.5 billion consignment of nearly 28,000 metric tons of raw sugar imported by a prominent local player, the deception was laid bare.

The legislative investigation concluded that Kenya cannot actually refine raw sugar at scale.

They found that the country’s primary designated refinery was mechanically non-operational-yet thousands of tonnes of raw sugar, completely lacking manufacturing or expiry dates, were cleared through customs and quietly routed to bonded warehouses in Mombasa and the Inland Container Depot in Nairobi.

The upshot of the current situation is clear: by granting tax exemptions for an industrial input that cannot be industrially processed, the State has engineered a highly lucrative parallel market. On one side stands prohibitively expensive, legally imported refined sugar.

On the other, lies a massive loophole where mountains of cheap, potentially toxic raw sugar will surreptitiously find its way onto retail shelves.

If the government genuinely wants Kenyans to believe the Sh40 per kilogramme duty hike on imported table sugar was designed to protect farmers and resuscitate Western Kenya’s sugar belt, it must pass a simple test of sincerity: immediately ban raw sugar imports.

Until Kenya has verifiable, fully operational domestic refining capacity operating under strict public health oversight, there is no economic or logistical justification for allowing a single kilogramme of raw sugar into the country.

Continuing to permit these imports when the capacity to refine them is non-existent is not a policy oversight; it is complicity. It proves that public policy is no longer being written to manage the economy, but rather to manufacture artificial price gaps for the exclusive benefit of corrupt elites.

We are witnessing a fundamental shift in the tactics of the corrupt. For decades, grand corruption in Kenya followed a predictable playbook: greedy elites extracted rents and kickbacks from multi-billion-shilling capital projects, inflating procurement costs and loading the national balance sheet with unsustainable sovereign debt.

That game is changing. Choked by a mountain of debt, a punishing fiscal deficit, and the intense scrutiny of international financial institutions, the government no longer has the fiscal space to launch massive infrastructure projects.

The taps of easy, debt-fueled capital expenditure have run dry, and large capital projects are now financed through securitisation and off-balance-sheet transactions. As a result, corruption has migrated upstream-engineered through trade and regulatory arbitrage.

The Kenyan consumer is, quite literally, being made to pay the price.

Digital lender Tala is laying off up to 10 percent of its workforce in Kenya as part of a global reorganisation to streamline operations, joining a growing list of technology firms restructuring their workforces amid the increasing adoption of artificial intelligence.

Tala said on Thursday that the plan to lay off part of its staff will not impact its operations in Kenya, and the reorganisation will lead to centralisation of functions across its markets amid an increasing shift to embedded services.

The move comes just months after Nairobi-based AI data and annotation firm Samasource laid off 1,108 employees, after losing a major contract with Meta Platforms, marking a major blow to Kenyan tech workers.

Over the last two years, similar layoffs by major tech companies, including Microsoft, Google, and Meta, have also impacted Kenyan workers, with the growing use of artificial intelligence being blamed for the tech layoffs globally.

Tala, which is among the leading digital credit providers in Kenya, said its decision to let go of some staff stems from centralisation of functions, meaning some roles will be done from its global headquarters, eliminating the need for workers across its market.

‘As part of the evolution of Tala’s global operating model, we are streamlining our functions and centralising operations to align with our strategic roadmap,’ the company said in a statement.

‘This strategic transition of centralising functions will support Tala’s global objective of embedding our services into partner ecosystems at a scale and help us deliver even more value to our customers and partners in Kenya and beyond.’

Embedding credit services means attaching them to other services such as insurance, financed devices, or assets like motorcycles, among others. By embedding credit to other services, a company leans more on the marketing and customer acquisition of its partners rather than its own.

In Kenya, Tala is estimated to have about 950 employees, based on its past disclosures, meaning that it will let go of about 90 to 100 employees in its latest wave of layoffs. It has not disclosed which roles specifically will be impacted by the layoffs.

The latest layoff comes just over a year after the last one, which happened in April last year, when Tala said it would lay off 28 employees, representing about 3 percent of its workforce in Kenya.

There is an alarm worth paying attention to in Kenya’s retirement story, and it is backed by data.

A survey by the Retirement Benefits Authority (RBA) found that only 36 per cent of Kenyan retirees aged between 50 and 70 report having a strong sense of purpose in retirement. Just 46 per cent say they are enjoying life after work, while 53 per cent admit they miss the company of former colleagues.

These findings reveal a reality the pensions industry can no longer ignore. While financial planning for retirement is well covered, preparation for life after work remains significantly lacking. This raises an important question: Is it enough to secure the pension pot while overlooking the life that money is meant to support?

Retirement is not simply a financial event but one of the most significant transitions in a person’s life.

It marks the end of decades of structured work and the beginning of a new phase that requires purpose, identity, social connection and a renewed sense of direction.

Psychologists have long argued that purpose, routine and belonging are essential ingredients of wellbeing in later life.

They influence not only happiness but also health outcomes and longevity. When retirees lose their sense of identity or become socially isolated, the consequences can be profound.

The challenge is becoming more urgent as Kenya’s demographics evolve. Over the next two decades, Kenyans aged 50 and above are expected to account for more than 10 per cent of the population. Improvements in healthcare and rising life expectancy also mean that many citizens will spend 20 years or more in retirement.

Many pension schemes already offer pre-retirement training, but these programmes are often inconsistent and heavily focused on financial planning. Yet global experience shows that helping people imagine life after work is just as important as helping them save for it.

Trustees can play a meaningful role by integrating life planning into member education programmes and encouraging retirement transition initiatives that address health, wellness, entrepreneurship and social engagement.

Ultimately, the pensions industry must broaden its definition of success to include not only financial security but also wellbeing, purpose and social connectedness. A country that prepares only the pension and ignores the person risks producing retirees who are financially provided for, yet emotionally unanchored and socially isolated.

The growing number of police blockades around Nairobi have raised concern among the business community amid heavy losses whenever the security agencies deploy the strategy to curb protests in the city’s Central Business District (CBD).

Police on Thursday mounted yet another blockade on Nairobi, shutting all major roads leading to the CBD and bringing business to a standstill.

Motorists attempting to access the CBD through Mombasa Road, Lang’ata Road, Waiyaki Way, Thika Road, Ngong Road, and Kiambu Road were turned away.

There were also barricades at the Bunyala Road, City Stadium, and Kenyatta National Hospital roundabouts.

Thursday’s operation was mounted ahead of planned demonstrations marking the second anniversary of the deadly nationwide Gen Z protests against the Finance Bill, 2024, which was later scrapped.

It was the fourth such blockade in months, leaving businesses counting losses that run into billions of shillings. Shutting Nairobi for a day wipes out about Sh11.2 billion -signifying the impact of the now common blockades by the police.

On June 12, 2025, the CBD was shut down during protests triggered by the death of teacher and blogger Albert Ojwang in police custody.

Two weeks later, on June 25, security forces blockaded Nairobi ahead of the first anniversary of the bloody Gen Z protests.

Security agencies again shut down the city on July 7, 2025 to prevent processions by activists commemorating the country’s push for multi-party democracy, symbolising both the historic 1990 pro-democracy protests.

But as the blockade strategy takes root, businesses are bearing the brunt of the police actions.

Police blockades strangle access to entire commercial districts, resulting in massive economic fallout for businesses. The blockades lock out customers and disrupt supply chains and revenue streams for businesses.

Recurrent blockades also put businesses at risk because they can cause customers to seek alternative locations or online shopping options, thus hurting long-term foot traffic.

Nairobi’s gross county product (GCP) as of 2024 stood at approximately Sh4.11 trillion annually, which translates to about Sh11.2 billion per day. GCP is the geographic breakdown of a nation’s gross domestic product (GDP), measuring the total value of all goods and services produced within a specific county’s borders.

The Motorists Association of Kenya on Thursday condemned the blockades, saying they had disrupted critical travel.

“Nairobi serves as a critical terminal and transit hub for the entire country. By stopping travellers midway, the police have placed innocent Kenyans in grave danger and left them stranded without basic amenities,” the association said in a statement.

Beyond the city centre, access to other key commercial hubs was also affected on Thursday.

The Industrial Area, the heart of East Africa’s manufacturing, logistics, and supply chain operations, was difficult to access as police restricted movement along major routes.

The district hosts heavy and light manufacturing plants, bulk warehousing facilities, and major trade distribution centres serving Kenya and neighbouring countries.

Westlands, Nairobi’s secondary business district and home to the headquarters of local firms and multinational corporations, was also largely cut off.

The blockade forced the closure of thousands of businesses, including shops, supermarkets, hotels, schools, petrol stations, hawkers, and informal traders.

Farm produce traders operating at markets such as City Market and the Farmers Market also suspended operations.

Transport services across the city were heavily disrupted, as police barred matatus from entering the CBD, while private vehicles were turned away.

Passengers using public service vehicles (PSVs) were dropped in Mlolongo, Kangemi, Roysambu, and Madaraka on the Nyayo Stadium-Lang’ata Road — in the outskirts of the city — and forced to walk long distances or seek alternative transport, such as motorbikes, which are significantly more expensive.

Heavy-duty trucks transporting cargo through Nairobi to western Kenya and Uganda via the Nakuru Highway also faced delays due to restricted movement along Mombasa Road.

Businesses in downtown Nairobi hired vigilante groups to guard premises against anticipated looting and vandalism, which had been witnessed previously.

Thursday’s disruption came despite earlier assurances from the Interior ministry that it would be a normal working day.

Many workers who attempted to access the CBD were turned away by police, raising concerns about the police’s double-speak.

The Nairobi County government took a hit from lost revenues, such as parking fees. As of September 2025, Nairobi County was collecting about Sh22.2 million daily in own-source revenue, highlighting the economic cost of repeated shutdowns. Owners of private parking premises also lost revenue on the day.

Thursday’s shutdown had wider regional implications given Nairobi’s role as East Africa’s commercial hub. Some conferences were cancelled, while foreign governments, including the United States, issued travel advisories to their citizens.

But even as retail outlets counted losses, trading on the Nairobi Securities Exchange defied the shutdown. The stock market gained Sh17 billion, to close the day at Sh3.68 trillion. Investors bought heavily into the shares of Safaricom, Co-operative Bank of Kenya, East African Breweries Plc (EABL), KCB Group, and other firms, driving up their share prices.