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A fresh court battle has erupted between artistes, the Kenya Copyright Board (Kecobo), and the Music Copyright Society of Kenya (MCSK), over alleged mismanagement of funds collected from music and art consumers in the form of royalties.

Central to the ongoing dispute initiated by musicians Justus Ngemu and Saul Esikuri is the alleged loss of Sh56 million at MCSK. This amount had allegedly been received as royalties for artistes and musicians.

Employees of the Kenya Industrial Property Industry (Kipi) have been barred from registering or revoking trademarks, patents, and industrial designs without the express approval of the agency’s board of directors.

The Ministry of Investments, Trade, and Industry said it had been notified that staff of Kipi are processing and registering trademarks, patents, and industrial designs without involving the board or its technical committee.

The reality of energy poverty facing Kenya, just like the rest of the countries in Africa, is with us. The government seems intentional in pushing the realisation of energy sovereignty, as seen in the focus of 2025 Mashujaa Day themed Transforming Lives Through Sustainable Energy Solutions’ in Kitui.

In addition to focusing on improving sector policies, better management, and opening up the sector, the government is making efforts to mobilise resources and investors to grow the industry. Key policy and administrative actions noted that it’s possible to achieve this through reducing the costs of renewable energy technologies, making it the most viable energy source.

Kenya is highly endowed with several energy sources, including geothermal, solar, wind and hydrological sources, which, if harnessed through government policies, private sector investment and private-public partnerships, will end citizens’ struggle to access clean energy.

The energy sector continues to be highly regulated, closed and left to public agencies, and little information, including through the media, is circulated to enhance understanding, regulation and opportunities that would allow other players to invest and create mass demand for energy by citizens. This has been very frustrating for private players/investors.

The government master plan for the energy sector notes that, given its position on the Equator (4.5° South and 5° North), Kenya is endowed with very high solar resources, among the highest 10 of sub-Saharan African countries.

For this reason, the government is keen on the development and use of renewable energy sources, including solar, which are widely available for power generation in Kenya, in addition to being socially, economically and environmentally friendly.

The focus on the energy sector by the government is not an isolated act, for a few years ago, President William Ruto addressed the issue, noting that Kenya is on a transition to 100 percent clean energy by 2030 and affirmed his commitment to the same.

He acknowledged that access to clean and improved cooking solutions as a contribution to Kenyans’ efforts towards adapting to climate change resilience remains a challenge because of financing. Improved cooking technologies also reduce the amount of time women and girls spend collecting fuel, allowing them to pursue education, training and economic activities.

In addition to the fact that high efficiency cooking stoves lead to even larger benefits in time and energy saving, it also contributes to reduction of emissions.

He particularly noted that the clean cooking sector requires urgent attention, because its continued neglect will frustrate the country’s efforts towards dealing with pollution, improved health through decreased disease burden and mitigate adverse effects of climate change.

Among the challenges hindering access to energy in Kenya is the inability to apply new innovations and technological adaptations enhance production and distribution, reluctance by the sector to open to more players, poor marketing and inadequate financial investments.

However, the most overriding challenge to Kenyans realising the benefits in the sector is lack of information on using clean energy, available energy options, health and economic advantages on using clean energy, which limits demand and reliance on single traditional energy source, and limits investment in the sector.

Knowledge and public awareness are critical in the revolution that is needed to deal with energy poverty in the country, as this will create demand, create a market and attract investors in the sector.

Public awareness and access to information on the policies, procedures and opportunities is critical for opening the sector, interesting investors to the sector and allowing reaping the benefits in the sector.

The media is a critical player in this endeavor, and the framing and setting agenda on the sector on eradicating the challenges in the sector.

Availability of information, on specific costs, resource allocations and legislative frameworks through public databases and official websites, media space and related are very vital.

This kind of transparency builds public trust and facilitates foreign and domestic investments by reducing the friction caused by information scarcity.

In most cases the factors limiting access to cleaner and more efficient energy supply are not primarily of a technical/engineering nature – inventing more products will on its own make little difference but public mobilisation, information on advantages that come with use of clean energy, push for enabling policy environment for increased investment among others.

The media has a substantive role to play if Kenyans will solve the challenges in the energy sector. Besides and at basic level, informing and educating people about the nature of the sector is a necessary requisite for participation in the decision-making process on issues affecting the local communities.

For the media to effectively play its public education, agenda setting roles, a more in-depth approach to coverage of the renewable energy sector should be used. This will require that the media changes its framing on adoption of renewable energy as a public interest issue, offer possible solutions to challenges in the sector and help the country focus citizens on use of renewable energy.

It’s desirable that media prioritise critical information and stories on opportunities in the energy sector and inform local communities and the citizenry at large on potential impacts of such activities.

The government has made it clear in several policy statements including in the Vision 2030 that it is committed to ensuring access to clean energy a key priority.

Use of clean cooking technologies will reduce the country’s annual disease burden attributable to Household Air Pollution from 49 per cent (21,560) to 20 percent.

Eight commercial banks raised interest rates in the year to August, placing them on a collision course with the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), which has threatened daily fines on lenders that deny borrowers lower interest charges.

The overall weighted average lending rates of DIB Bank Kenya, Consolidated Bank of Kenya, Co-operative Bank of Kenya, Kingdom Bank, UBA Kenya Bank, Diamond Trust Bank Kenya, Premier Bank Kenya, and Access Bank Kenya have increased over the past year, according to fresh CBK data.

Africa’s youth have, over the years, been referred to as the continent’s untapped potential. This framing is common in reports and political speeches in Kenya, where 85 percent of the population is below the age of 35.

However, the truth is that young Africans do not stand on the fringes. They are already creating the future, innovating technologies, disrupting industries, and driving social change.

What is now needed is a strong commitment to ensuring that the youth have the environment and resources needed to tap into their power, a commitment that African governments must make now.

So how do we unlock this power?

There are key elements that must be unpacked, no matter how uncomfortable they make us. It is in this discomfort that we can start to actualise Africa’s great future. It is paramount that the trust deficit between citizens in multiple African countries and their governments is addressed first.

We cannot build on a rocky foundation, and the youth, especially, do not trust their governments. This trust will be rebuilt on the delivery of services, on an accountability that honours enquiries from the youth instead of punishing them when they demand a just government.

Governments must start seeing the youth as capable partners in building Africa’s future and solving global problems.

A testament to this is Wawira Njiru. At just 21, she founded Food for Education, which ensures students get access to nutritious meals at school. Their work is efficient and leverages technology, too. She has gone from serving 25 students to serving 500,000 children daily across Kenya. The schools she supports have seen a 27 percent increase in enrolment.

Additionally, national policies must not only incorporate youth insights but must have a tangible impact today. Youth representation in government is key in this and must be harnessed from a young age. A key example that can be borrowed is that of the Liberian Children’s Parliament, now known as the Liberian National Children’s Representative Forum.

This space ensured children across Liberia were not just represented in national governance issues, but got to interact with leadership organs in government. It also gave rise to the youth leaders Africa needs, like the powerful human rights activist Satta Fatumata Sheriff, a dynamic young Liberian changemaker. Satta is making a real-time impact in Liberia today.

Another uncomfortable truth we must face is that we are at the beginning of the end of funding as we’ve known it. African governments must wake up, clamp down on corruption, bridge commercial alliances with each other, and begin to leverage domestic revenue.

Without prioritising this, we will not have the autonomy or sustainability needed to ensure that African youth can realise their potential.

The future of Africa isn’t on a distant horizon; it is unfolding right now. Every day, the youth of this continent are actively creating it. The world must catch up.

Why the world must pay attention

While income gaps in Africa are often discussed, age gaps between leaders and their people present an opportunity to discuss what a brighter African future should look like.

It is against this background that the Future of Africa Podcast, which I have the pleasure of co-hosting, was created. The podcast was developed to amplify African voices participating in global discourses and also align with generational views.

Each episode is a moderated, intergenerational conversation featuring a youthful changemaker alongside an elder statesperson or thought leader, ensuring a true exchange of ideas across generations.

It is a seven-episode series, with each episode bridging local experiences and global policy debates. The most inspirational idea to me is the nature in which the podcast reinvents youth not as passive beneficiaries of development, but as active creators of the future of Africa.

Moving from potential to power

To unlock the youth potential, there is a need to transform education systems to incorporate digital literacy, green economy, and entrepreneurial skills.

Youth-led ventures should also be funded. It is also crucial to provide the youth with a place at the decision table and make their voices heard on the policies that have direct influence on their lives and ambitions.

Governments, investors, and global partners face a crucial challenge: It’s time to move beyond discussing potential and start investing in these empowered individuals.

Tea produced in Rwanda and Burundi suffered the sharpest fall in prices at the weekly regional auction in Mombasa over the first eight months of 2025 amid overall subdued demand from buyers, which is likely to trim farmers’ earnings this year, analysis showed.

Data showed that the average price from Rwanda stood at $1.61 (Sh208.07) over the first eight months of 2025, compared to $2.84 (Sh367.04) in a similar period, marking a 43.3 percent drop, which is the sharpest among countries trading at the regional auction run by the East African Tea Trade Association.

The Executive is petitioning Parliament to repeal a tax on clinker importation, revealing huge disruptions it has caused in the steel and cement industries since its introduction two years ago.

Trade Cabinet Secretary Lee Kinyanjui says the Executive is taking action after observing the impacts the levy has had on the operations of companies in the steel and cement sectors.

Three former managers of the National Bank of Kenya (NBK) have been acquitted by a Nairobi court of charges of fraudulently clearing six companies’ loan arrears totalling to Sh1.056 billion.

Milimani magistrate Gilbert Shikwe quashed the charges brought against George Weke Jaba (chief credit officer), Bonface Amunga Biko (executive director corporate banking), and Dennis Chumbe who was the head medium business.

If you asked Addis Alemayehou where to put money between Kenya and Ethiopia, his answer would depend on the size of the cheque. The seasoned entrepreneur, who has invested in both markets, believes scale is everything.

‘If you gave me Sh100 million, I would bet it on Ethiopia. You can call me biased, but I’d rather go for a market of 130 million people than one of 50 million or 60 million people. The potential for growth is much higher. Ethiopia’s economy has been growing faster than Kenya’s. We caught up, and now we’re ahead. A giant has awakened next door, and it’s not going back to sleep. For Sh10 million, however, I’d put that in Kenya, it’s competitive, but with the right niche, you’ll still thrive,’ he tells BDLife.

In the wake of tough economic times, many employers have been forced to restructure their businesses, reduce their workforce, or shut down entire operations.

For many people, appearance of a redundancy notice can truly turn their world upside down as it suddenly takes away your job.

While a severance cheque may come with short-term financial relief, redundancy often signals a major career disruption and financial uncertainty. The Employment Act, 2007 defines redundancy as a situation where an employee loses a job involuntarily, typically due to the employee’s role or services becoming unnecessary, often as a result of structural, technological, or other changes within the organisation.

Understanding the legal and tax obligations involved in the redundancy is crucial for both employers and employees.

Compliance with the law ensures that rights and responsibilities of parties involved are upheld and help mitigate potential intervention from the courts or other authorities, if due process is not observed.

Before an employer can lawfully declare redundancy, they must follow a specific procedure outlined in the Employment Act.

Failing to observe any of the specified steps could render the entire process illegal and expose the company to lawsuits or compensation claims.

First, if the employee is a member of a trade union, the employer must inform both the union and the labour officer in charge of the area of the reasons for, and the extent of, the intended redundancy at least one month before termination.

If the employee is not in a union, the employer must notify the employee directly in writing and also inform the labour officer.

When deciding which employees will be affected by the redundancy, the employer must use fair and objective criteria. These include the employees’ tenure, their skills, their performance, and their reliability. Courts require employers to document and justify the selection criteria used. Importantly, employees must not be treated unfairly because of their union membership status. Whether or not an employee belongs to a union should not affect the terms of separation.

The employer must pay for pending leave days, give at least one month’s notice or one month’s salary in lieu, and severance pay of at least 15 days’ wages for every full year worked. More generous packages may be offered under contracts or internal policies.

While the Employment Act does not explicitly require consultation, Kenyan courts have emphasised the importance of genuine consultation with affected employees or their representatives. Failure to consult may render the redundancy process procedurally unfair.

While severance pay is intended to alleviate the impact of the sudden loss of income and provide a financial buffer while the employee seeks new employment opportunities or undergoes retraining, the compensation is not tax-exempt in Kenya.

Under the current tax laws, pay received by an employee upon termination is taxable, unless the individual qualifies for specific tax privileges granted by applicable laws.

The methodology for calculating tax on severance pay is determined based on the provisions of the employment contract and follows the procedures set forth in the Income Tax Act.

Employers are required by law to withhold the appropriate taxes and deductions from severance pay prior to issuing the final cheque to the employee.

Inaccurate or incomplete compliance with these requirements may result in penalties from the authorities and potential legal action from employees or their unions.

In a period of rising job losses and corporate restructuring, it is essential for employers and employees to have a clear understanding of the legal and tax consequences associated with redundancy.

For employers, strict adherence to the law is not only a statutory requirement but also fundamental to maintaining trust and fairness during transitions.

Employees should also familiarise themselves with the provisions of the law and consult with qualified legal or tax professionals as appropriate.

So, don’t wait until the cheque clears to ask questions. Whether you’re an HR professional or an employee, understanding your rights and responsibilities is paramount.