Asianet Pakistan Private Limited

As many scramble for 100 feet by 50 feet plots in Nairobi and its environs, there is a new rush among the super-rich to get away from the city and acquire plots of up to 230 acres in conservancies located in the wild.

Lolldaiga Conservancy, in Nanyuki, is the latest to join the foray, with 11 plots for sale in Lolldaiga Valley. The smallest plot on sale is Forest Lugga East, at 15.2 acres going for $395,000 (Sh51 million) while the largest is Big Glade being 233 acres.

Big Glade is the main jewel of the project, giving the owner the best house site in the area with scenic views of Mt. Kenya.

The realtors declined to disclose the price.

The plots have names, and distance is given in flight time – 45 minutes from Nairobi by air – signalling the calibre of clientele the project is targeting.

Besides buying the land on a leasehold for 99 years, one is expected to adhere to strict construction rules set by management to ensure the least possible interference with the natural habitat.

The rules include houses being built to be hidden as much as possible, implying the roof shouldn’t be visible above the vegetation. The house should be solar-powered, harvest rainwater and use natural construction materials as much as possible, helping blend into the surroundings to retain the feeling of living in the wild.

There is also a cap to the amount of land that can be used for construction, which is dependent on the size of one’s plot.

On the 15.2-acre plot, the construction zone is capped at 1.5 acres, while construction land on the whole 3,750-acre valley, subdivided into 30 unequal plots, is at one percent.

Others on sale are five-acre plots in Sangare Conservancy in Nyeri, which are going for $450,000 (Sh59.4 million ). Sangare Conservancy, a 4,250-acre land, is in the market looking to sell four house sites, with 11 already taken up.

Realtors reckon the conservation is attractive to wealthy investors who desire luxury while feeling they are contributing to environmental conservation and development of the communities hosting the conservancies.

‘The investors obviously are looking for a project that is in the wild; they want a bush home and want to know the Kenyan wild as it were. But they also invest in it because of the work that is being done outside of the project – the work being done with the communities, conservation, wildlife – the 360-degree angle of the whole thing,’ said Tarquin Gross, head of residential agency at Knight Frank, the realtors selling the plots.

Nanyuki is the latest front on a model made popular in the Maasai Mara region and dubbed Safari Estates. The 1,000-acre Enonkishu Conservancy hosts 40 five-acre plots under the Naretoi project.

Currently, there is a house on sale in Naretoi, Tumbili House, priced at $5.5 million (Sh715 million). The house is built two metres above ground, supported by stilts, ensuring it does not interfere with the vegetation on the ground or the movement of wild animals.

According to the Financial Times, the house is owned by a Briton who built his wealth in the advertising industry, underlining the appetite for such investments in the international market.

Most of those who take up the houses are international investors who do not have to live in the country, opening the window for the houses to be rented on a short-term basis.

‘A lot of them are international investors who have busy lives in their own right wherever it is in the world, and they want this sort of haven to come to and get away from their busy life and actually feel like they are not only satisfying their own desires to get away from their busy lives but also with the desire to give back in whatever ways they can,’ said Mr Gross.

‘Some of them will live there full time. In Naretoi, there are a few people who live there, but a lot of them are not there full time – some of them rent out their properties on a short-term basis, and others don’t rent them out and will come for three months of the year,’ he added.

One of those open to tourism accommodation in Naretoi is Mara Moja.

In Lolldaiga Valley, the project is supporting schools in Umande and Muramati areas and restoring the forest habitat along the Sirimon River.

To execute the projects, the investors make annual contributions, which sources placed at $9,200 (Sh1.2 million ). The annual contribution is broken down into two parts, with one part covering service charges for items such as water, track and trail maintenance and security, while the second portion is a mandatory contribution to habitat restoration and community development projects.

Owners of Naretoi contribute $13,000 (Sh1.7 million ) in annual fees, with $6,000 (Sh780,000 ) being for community projects and the rest for service charges.

‘Developing the estates makes them money to have the consistency to still remain a conservancy,’ said Johnson Ndenge, a real estate consultant. ‘It also provides disparity in terms of claims of idle land – because you now do not have thousands of acres lying idle,’ he added.

The plots at Naretoi have also proven that the investment is good for speculative investors. Seven years ago, the five-acre plots were on sale for between $250,000 and $400,000.

Recently, two plots that had come back to market had an asking price of $2.2 million, capturing the price escalation that accompanies the actualisation of the project.

Some of my most valuable leadership conversations have happened on a golf course.

Away from boardrooms, presentations and formal introductions, I have had opportunities to engage with business leaders whose journeys I have followed and admired.

Recently, at a golf event bringing together several CEOs, something stayed with me: some walked over and initiated conversations themselves.

Their openness made engagement easy. Perspectives were exchanged, experiences shared and connections formed without the usual formalities of corporate hierarchy.

It left me reflecting on a question: how many opportunities could organisations unlock if that same openness became part of everyday working life?

How we present ourselves matters. Our preparation, communication, appearance and ability to listen influence how others perceive us. Being ready to contribute thoughtfully can turn an unexpected encounter into a meaningful conversation.

Leaders also carry a responsibility in that exchange: to remain curious enough to see beyond a title, an unfamiliar face or an established impression.

A valuable contribution may come from someone who has never been invited into the strategy room.

Creating room for possibility

The late Chris Kirubi offered a powerful example of this outlook. Writing about young people and mentorship, he observed: ‘We can all learn from each other.’

In the same article, he encouraged readers to find a teacher: ‘who is easily accessible and is willing to walk with you all along the way.’

Kirubi described how listening to young people’s ambitions strengthened his desire to mentor them. His willingness to engage created opportunities for learning in both directions.

For me, that is a practical lesson for corporate leadership. Experience should deepen our ability to recognise potential. It should make us better listeners.

A junior employee may understand a customer frustration that has not reached management. A frontline colleague may see an emerging market opportunity before it appears in a report. A new team member may question a process everyone else has learned to tolerate. The opportunity begins when someone takes their contribution seriously.

Responsiveness is part of execution

One quality I have appreciated in several senior leaders is their willingness to respond. Sometimes it is a brief acknowledgement, sometimes a referral, sometimes an invitation to discuss the matter later.

A response need not be immediate or lengthy to be useful. It needs to provide clarity. Leaders cannot personally pursue every proposal.

However, when ideas routinely receive no acknowledgement, the organisation risks losing more than a conversation. A customer problem remains unresolved. A partnership loses momentum. An employee stops offering suggestions.

Aliko Dangote raised a relevant question in a conversation with the International Finance Corporation: ‘How do we get this potential into reality?’

He was discussing Africa’s economic potential. I believe the question applies equally within organisations. We speak confidently about talent, innovation and opportunity. The leadership task is to create the conditions through which those possibilities become results.

That requires a route from contribution to consideration, from consideration to decision, and from decision to accountable action.

Access and responsibility

Those who manage access to senior leaders occupy an influential position. Their judgement can help an important issue reach the right person, with sufficient context and at the right time.

Protecting a leader’s focus is necessary. So is recognising when an unfamiliar person brings something worth hearing.

The useful questions are practical: What problem is being raised? What is its significance? Who can evaluate it? What happens next?

An employee should have a credible route for a sound idea to receive consideration, even without a personal relationship with an executive.

My own interactions with Raila Odinga also shaped my perspective on this. Having known him personally, I valued the human connection that could exist alongside his stature. Those encounters reminded me how lasting an impression a leader can make when someone feels acknowledged.

I carry that lesson into my understanding of leadership: people remember how you received them, and whether you made room for their voice.

Small contributions deserve a hearing

Wangari Maathai expressed the value of individual contribution simply:

‘It’s the little things citizens do. That’s what will make the difference. My little thing is planting trees.’ (serresforunesco.org)

For me, her words offer a useful lens for organisational life.

We should be attentive to the modest suggestion, the local observation and the small experiment. An employee proposing a simpler customer journey may be identifying the beginning of a larger improvement.

People need room to contribute before they can demonstrate the full value of their thinking.

Leaders can create that room by asking questions, giving useful feedback and allowing promising ideas to be tested with clear objectives.

People need pathways to participate

Barack Obama’s journey from community organising in Chicago to the presidency is an inspiring example of how leadership can develop through public engagement. (millercenter.org) His words capture the responsibility each person holds:

‘We are the change that we seek.’ (millercenter.org)

I take from this an invitation to act: prepare the proposal, offer the insight, take responsibility for the next step.

There is also a challenge for those already leading. If we want people to take initiative, our working practices must give that initiative somewhere to go.

Teams spanning generations bring different experiences and expectations. Leaders should remain curious about those differences while establishing clear ways for everyone to contribute.

Digital tools can make submitting ideas easier. Accountability determines whether anything happens afterwards.

A useful process identifies who will assess a proposal, provides a reasonable timeframe for feedback and assigns ownership when an idea moves forward.

Openness must be matched by preparation

Employees have a responsibility too. A strong proposal explains the problem, the evidence, the expected benefit and the decision required.

Leaders should respond with equal clarity. Even a decision not to proceed can preserve trust when the reasoning is explained respectfully.

The leadership culture I believe in combines accessibility with judgement, and initiative with discipline.

My experiences on the golf course have reminded me how much a simple conversation can unlock. The challenge is to make that openness part of how we work every day.

Somewhere in an organisation, someone may already see the next opportunity for growth.

Will our leadership practices help that idea reach the people who can act on it?

Kenya’s skyline is changing. Apartments, commercial developments and industrial facilities are reshaping our towns and cities. But investment in the structures we can see must be matched by attention to something less visible: the competence of the people who make those buildings work and the systems that hold them accountable.

Plumbing is a case in point. It sits at the intersection of public health, water security, sanitation and building performance. A building may look impressive, but its value depends on reliable water supply, safe sanitation and drainage that functions as intended.

The question facing Kenya is not whether regulations exist, but whether they work together to establish competence, qualifications, skills progression and who is responsible when standards are not met. The cost of weak standards is rarely paid only by the person who performed the work. It appears later in hidden leaks, rework, damaged property, avoidable maintenance costs and disrupted businesses.

Developers face defects and delays; homeowners inherit repair bills; public investment delivers diminished value for taxpayers. Meanwhile, contractors who invest in training and quality assurance find themselves undercut by shortcuts.

For those of us in contracting, this is not an abstract policy debate. Building technologies, specifications and client expectations continue to evolve. Taller, denser developments demand greater precision in installation, testing and maintenance.

Practitioners entering the trade today need broader technical competencies, supported by credible, standardised ways to demonstrate and continuously upgrade their skills. Kenya already possesses institutions responsible for training, certification, regulation and approvals.

The National Building Code 2024 provides a framework for building design, construction and maintenance. Delivering on its requirements demands competent practitioners, effective supervision and consistent inspection. Standards and competence assurance systems must reinforce one another.

As climate variability increases, properly installed and maintained water and sanitation systems remain indispensable to public health and urban resilience.

A recent industry dialogue involving regulators, contractors, manufacturers, TVET institutions and practitioners highlighted the need for clearer pathways to recognise competence, support professional progression and accountability. Three priorities emerged.

First, make competence and career progression transparent and inclusive. Employers and property owners should understand what qualifications and accreditation signify. Practitioners need a visible route from apprenticeship to master artisan and specialised contractor, including Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL).

Many skilled Kenyan fundis acquired their expertise through hands-on informal learning. Professionalisation must certify and elevate these artisans against recognised standards, rather than exclude them for lacking formal academic credentials.

Second, align existing institutions around practical delivery. Training curricula, occupational standards, construction regulations and accreditation mechanisms should complement one another. Government agencies, industry and training bodies should clarify their responsibilities and make the route from learning to competent practice straightforward.

The goal is seamless inter-agency coordination, not another layer of bureaucracy.

Third, integrate strict enforcement into professionalisation. Technical standards mean little if non-compliance faces no meaningful scrutiny. Inspection, supervision and accountability must accompany investment in skills.

Developers and public procuring entities also have a role: purchasing decisions should reward competence and quality, not simply the lowest price. The objective is to protect consumers, reduce avoidable losses and create a legitimate route to economic empowerment for skilled practitioners. A functional system makes quality easy to verify and poor practice difficult to conceal.

Employers must also lead from the front. Structured workplace learning paired with classroom instruction bridges technical theory with site conditions. Industry-led dual apprenticeship programmes such as PropelA show how employers and training institutions can jointly develop technical competence.

The dialogue also opened discussions around stronger industry coordination, potentially through a dedicated plumbing institute. Such an organisation can support professional development, industry frameworks and practitioner representation, but cannot replace statutory oversight.

Kenya’s ambitions for housing, water, sanitation and urban infrastructure are substantial. Yet buildings perform only as well as the systems within them and the people who design, install and maintain them. Investment in human competence protects investment in construction.

Professionalising the plumbing trade is not a narrow industry concern. It helps ensure Kenya’s rapid urban growth delivers safe, resilient and lasting infrastructure for households, communities and businesses.

The true measure of a modern city is not how fast or how high it builds. It is whether what it builds works, reliably, lasts and serves people safely. As Kenya raises its skyline, the professional standards beneath it must rise too.

Wealthy investors and fund managers splashed a record Sh1 trillion on seven bonds over four months, reflecting the abundance of cash in an economy that is favouring passive investments over setting up businesses.

Investor bids in auctions since July topped the Sh1 trillion mark, which was more than double the Sh480 billion sought by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) in the sales.

The CBK, which acts as the fiscal agent of the Treasury, accepted Sh654 billion from the investor bids, helping it reach 65.1 percent of its net domestic borrowing target for the 2026/27 fiscal cycle.

This underlines the growing flight to passive investments such as bonds and unit trusts instead of starting businesses in an environment where startups are struggling to survive.

Top buyers of bonds, including commercial banks, insurance firms and households, have continued to favour fixed income securities despite the decline in domestic interest rates.

Last week, the CBK disclosed that it had reached Sh642.5 billion in net domestic borrowing for the year starting July to October 26, a quarter short of surpassing the Sh987.4 billion target for the year to June next year.

‘The domestic market continues to support the growing budgetary financing requirements,’ Kamau Thugge, the CBK governor, told the National Assembly Finance and National Planning Committee on Friday.

‘This is supported by effective collaboration and coordination between the National Treasury and CBK, working with market participants and stakeholders.’

The CBK has found success in lengthening the maturity of domestic debt by reopening medium to long-term bonds, supported by ample market liquidity and relatively lower interest rates.

The sale marks a continuation of the recent trend of Kenyans pouring billions of shillings into bonds and money market funds while shunning riskier ventures like starting a business, which presents an opportunity for the economy to create new jobs.

For businesses that have delayed investment decisions, the bonds market provides a platform to protect the value of idle capital at minimal risk, while also retaining value through returns that are above the average rate of inflation.

Infrastructure bonds provide an attractive option for the passive investor due to their tax exemption on interest, leading to large subscriptions whenever they are offered by the government.

The largest haul from the bonds came in August under three reopened infrastructure bonds, which raised Sh312 billion against a target of Sh150 billion.

The three tax-free bonds attracted bids worth Sh460.3 billion, achieving a performance rate of 307 percent.

All seven bond auctions over the period have been oversubscribed, underlining continued investor appetite for government paper.

The CBK further attained success in pushing out maturities of Sh49.6 billion through four switch bonds, surpassing its target of Sh45 billion after outsized subscriptions of Sh52.4 billion.

The government is expected to face manageable domestic borrowing costs going into 2027, having raised at least three quarters of its annual target in four months, even as rebounding inflation threatens the interest rates outlook.

‘We expect a steady yield curve in the final quarter of the year. Domestic borrowing is ahead of the curve, with the fortnightly Treasury bond reopenings coupled with the bond switches aimed at lowering the short-term refinancing risk,’ analysts at Capital A Investment Bank said in a research note.

The CBK is currently in the market seeking to raise Sh50 billion through the reopening of 15- and 30-year Treasury bonds in a sale that runs to November 4.

Additionally, the CBK is seeking to switch Sh10 billion from maturing Treasury bills to a 10-year bond which would extend the part of the paper’s maturity by three years.

Treasury bonds have remained a popular passive investment option as investors shy away from deploying cash in the real economy, which would create new businesses, increasing productivity and jobs.

The bonds made up 83.21 percent of the Sh7.88 trillion domestic debt stock as of October 23, while the shorter-dated Treasury bills were 15.53 percent of local debt.

Financial corporations, including commercial banks, pension funds and insurance companies, held the bulk of local debt at 80 percent.

The balance of domestic debt is held by other parties, including households at 6.16 percent, non-residents at 4.46 percent and non-profits at 0.91 percent.

Investors have, at the same time, packed close to Sh1 trillion through collective investment schemes like money market funds (MMFs), special funds and fixed income funds, which also make circular investments back to Treasury bills and bonds.

Commercial banks’ fixed deposits, which are also deployed in Treasury bills and bonds, held Sh3.2 trillion at the end of July.

Rebounding inflation is expected to put pressure on domestic interest rates and likely drive investors away from bonds to short-dated Treasury bills on expectations of yields increasing.

This could harden the CBK’s push to drive investors into medium- to long-term bonds.

Analysts note that the rising preference for the 91-day Treasury bill, even at lower yields, shows that investors are prioritising liquidity and shorter investment commitments amid uncertainty over the inflation outlook.

‘We maintain our view that the 91-day paper will remain the preferred option, given that inflation is expected to remain elevated, on account of higher energy prices, plus drought conditions that continue to threaten agricultural output and could exert further pressure on food prices,’ analysts at AXYS Investment Bank said in a research note.

For many people, orchids are beautiful but intimidating plants, admired from a distance and often dismissed as expensive. Yet, for members of the Kenya Orchid Society, they are an accessible hobby that rewards patience, brings people together and offers years of enjoyment.

At the Kenya Orchid Society Annual Show, held at Sarit Expo Centre in Nairobi on October 30, 2026, hundreds of orchids were displayed in an array of colours, shapes and sizes.

The exhibition brought together seasoned growers, beginners and curious visitors, offering an opportunity to appreciate the plants and learn what it takes to grow them successfully.

For Anne Eriksson, who has been growing orchids for 11 years, the hobby began while she was still employed. It has since become an important part of her retirement.

“It has been a nice way to combine what I would call a passion with family time, because my husband is also into orchids,” she says.

The couple now grow a few hundred plants in greenhouses and shade houses at home.

When Anne started, experienced growers mentored her through the basics. She approached it like any other hobby and believes more Kenyans should do the same.

“Many Kenyans think that orchids are a hobby for a select few, but in my view, it’s a hobby like any other,” she says.

One common misconception is that an orchid will continue flowering indefinitely after purchase. Anne says buyers often take home a beautiful plant expecting it to maintain the same display throughout the year.

“Once the flower withers, they expect another one to come up immediately. That is not how it works.”

Orchids require patience. Some flower once a year, others twice, while a few bloom more frequently. Expecting a continuous display can leave beginners disappointed and ready to give up.

For Anne, however, that patience is part of the attraction.

“Orchids have taught me to be extremely patient. Also, you’ve got to treat each plant individually as opposed to generalising.”

That individual attention begins with understanding the plant’s growing conditions. One of the biggest mistakes beginners make is treating an orchid like an ordinary garden flower.

“One of the worst enemies for orchids is overwatering. It’s better to underwater an orchid than to overwater it. If you overwater an orchid, it will probably rot from the roots, and once this happens, that is the beginning of the end.”

Additionally, orchids need light to thrive, although the amount varies depending on the species. Keeping a plant in a dark corner of the living room can deprive it of an essential ingredient, while excessive direct sunlight can scorch its leaves.

Anne has not bought cut flowers in five years. ” I grow different orchids, and they bloom at different times. I always have flowers and a therapeutic fragrance in my home.”

Most of her plants remain in the greenhouse or shade house, but she occasionally brings flowering ones indoors. Their blooms can last weeks, sometimes months.

“Cut flowers, if you are lucky, will last a week,” she says.

20-year collection

She also sees orchids as a worthwhile long-term investment. A plant bought for Sh4,000, she says, could last 10 to 15 years with proper care and flower twice a year.

Her sister-in-law has Phalaenopsis orchids that have been in her collection for 20 years. Anne’s own prized plant is an Ansellia africana, acquired from an experienced grower eight years ago.

“It blooms only once a year, but when it does, it makes a statement. You just can’t ignore it,” she says with a laugh.

Rajul Patel, chairperson of the Kenya Orchid Society, says orchids should not be dismissed as expensive decorative plants.

For beginners, Rajul estimates that a suitable orchid can cost about Sh5,000.

“Now, if you think about it, a Phalaenopsis orchid actually lasts you for four months. Its flowers last for four months, giving you ambience and a heavenly fragrance. By the time you buy flowers every week for four months, you have spent a lot more than Sh5,000.”

The Society’s wider ambition is to challenge the perception that orchids are reserved for people with deep pockets.

“We aim to demystify that orchids are just for people who can afford them,” Rajul says.

She also values the community the hobby creates. Members come from different age groups, races and professional backgrounds. One of the exhibitors at the show was an eight-year-old boy.

“I have found a family in the Orchid Society. I believe orchids bring people together,” she says.

Beyond the flowers, she believes the process of caring for plants offers its own rewards. “Taking care of the plant actually heals you, you know? It’s therapeutic, and it gives you so much peace.”

270 indigenous species

The Society’s interest extends beyond cultivated hybrids to Kenya’s indigenous orchids. According to Rajul, Kenya has about 270 indigenous species. The first two exhibits at the show were dedicated to indigenous East African orchids, including species native to Kenya.

Visitors often ask where they can find these plants growing in the wild. The Society deliberately keeps that information private to protect their natural habitats.

Some species are already extinct, while others are protected and restricted from international trade. Rajul hopes that propagation and tissue culture for commercial sale will help reduce pressure on wild populations.

Indigenous orchids look quite different from the imported hybrids commonly sold in shops and supermarkets.

“The local ones are not the big, flat, glossy Phalaenopsis you see in supermarkets that last four months on your table. They are often smaller and more delicate, with subtle colours and intricate lips and spurs you only see up close. They do not shout. The imported ones, especially Cattleyas and Phalaenopsis hybrids, are bred for show, size, colour and shelf life,” she explains.

According to Rajul, there is no single favourite orchid among Kenyan growers. Personal taste, growing experience and the memories attached to individual plants all influence what collectors value.

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. What I like is very different from what my fellow orchid hobbyists like. A lot of orchids have sentimental value to each grower. They represent personal triumph, so I can’t say there is one favourite orchid.”

Helena Rame, the Society’s secretary, has grown orchids for 17 years and is a judge under the Society’s rules, which are adopted from the American Orchid Society.

The system allows Kenyan judges to participate in international exhibitions. In March this year, four Kenyan judges participated in the World Orchid Conference in Dresden, Germany.

“Our judging society is well-known in the wider world. We draw a lot of interest to Kenyan indigenous species,” says Helena, who has also judged in orchid shows in Taiwan and Johannesburg.

Every year, visitors leave the expo expressing interest in joining the Society. The Society runs annual beginners’ courses covering potting, watering and fertilising.

“Of course, it’s a lot of theory, but before people start growing themselves and making their own mistakes, nothing will happen. You have to have your own orchid, make your own mistakes, be patient, learn and experiment. Only then will you succeed.”

She is also candid about the possibility of losing plants. “Anybody who wants to get into this hobby has to understand that losses will happen. If you consistently lose a certain genus of orchid, take a break and experiment with another genus. But always do your research.”

Costly disappointments

Even experienced growers have costly disappointments. Helena recalls buying a Cattleya species from Venezuela for about $600 (Sh78,000). She cared for it for six years before it died.

“It’s an expensive hobby, yes, but you can still have a small collection of plants that you get as divisions from your friends, for example. It doesn’t mean that you have to be super wealthy just to start your small collection.”

Sharing is, in fact, one of the pleasures of belonging to the Society.

“If you nurture one plant well, multiply it, you can exchange it with your friend, and you won’t have to pay anything,” she says.

For anyone considering taking up the hobby, the growers’ advice is to start with one plant, understand its needs and give it time.

Longhorn Publishers sank into its largest net loss of Sh949.6 million since listing on the Nairobi Securities Exchange after changes to the school curriculum forced the education publisher to make a Sh518 million provision on investments in books that are likely to become obsolete.

The Nairobi Securities Exchange-listed firm’s loss in the year ended June 2026 is nearly four times the Sh261.4 million loss recorded a year earlier, as Sh518 million impairment charges on old curriculum-related investments wiped out gains from higher sales.

The loss is the publisher’s worst since its listing on the NSE in 2012, highlighting the financial cost of adapting to Kenya’s revised Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) and the phase-out of the 8-4-4 syllabus materials. Longhorn last returned a full-year net profit in 2022 at Sh39.91 million.

The trigger for the Sh518 million impairment was the approval of Grade 12 CBC books two months ago, which effectively closed the final remaining market for textbooks under the outgoing 8-4-4 system.

Longhorn managing director Simon Ngigi told Business Daily the approval meant the publisher could no longer rely on the old curriculum to generate new demand, prompting it to make full provisions for its remaining 8-4-4 book investments.

“Grade 12 CBC books were approved two months ago, thereby putting an end to the last of the 8-4-4 classes that were buying the old curriculum books. That was the trigger we needed to fully provide for all 8-4-4 related books,” Mr Ngigi said.

However, he explained that the provisions do not mean all the affected books have become immediately unsaleable. Form Three and Four learners are yet to transition to CBC, with the new curriculum expected to reach the two classes in 2027 and 2028, respectively.

The curriculum transition has exposed the challenges facing publishers holding investments in textbooks and other learning materials whose commercial value has diminished as schools move to revised syllabuses.

Mr Ngigi said the publisher expects to sell some of the books already provided for over the next year or so, offering a possibility of recovering part of the value of its old curriculum inventory.

The publisher’s impairment loss, in addition to the derecognition of previously recognised deferred tax assets amounting to Sh262 million, contributed to the deterioration in its bottom-line.

Longhorn said the financial year was also characterised by the continued implementation of the revised curriculum in its key markets, delays in institutional procurement and constrained funding for the business.

Despite these challenges, the publisher managed to grow revenue by 21 percent to Sh811 million from Sh672.1 million, supported by expanded market coverage and improved sales performance. However, the writing off saw the cost of sales jump 75.4 percent to Sh913.8 million.

The firm said it would have posted an operating profit of Sh16 million, excluding the curriculum-related impairment charges, compared with an operating loss of Sh20 million in the previous year.

The publisher’s financial position weakened further, with total assets falling 40.2 percent to Sh1.33 billion, while shareholders’ equity moved from a positive Sh18.1 million to a negative Sh1.03 billion.

Longhorn said the completion of key curriculum revisions provides a platform for renewed sales momentum, with investments in curriculum-aligned intellectual property expected to support future growth.

The company is also banking on digital learning solutions through its LoHo Learning platform, product diversification and expansion into new customer segments to improve recurring revenues.

It said it would continue to pursue opportunities to improve gross margins, strengthen subsidiary performance and increase cash generation as it seeks to rebuild its market position.

The developments concerning Microsoft’s Africa Development Centre (ADC) in Nairobi have been weighing on me, particularly because of what they mean for the people whose careers have been built there.

I think about the engineers who have spent years developing their skills, working with talented colleagues and contributing to technology with global relevance. I think about the uncertainty facing them and their families, and the disruption to careers they have worked hard to build.

An engineering centre is more than a collection of jobs. It is an environment where people learn from one another, tackle complex problems, exercise professional judgment and grow into engineering leaders. Over time, these interactions build institutional knowledge and technical capabilities that cannot simply be recreated overnight.

Having begun my career as a software engineer, this is personal to me. I have experienced technology from several perspectives: as an engineer in the US; as a Microsoft executive helping grow the business and its ambitions in Africa; through public-policy engagement to enable investment and innovation; and now as a board leader driving digital transformation across African businesses.

I spent 21 years at Microsoft, including helping establish its presence in Kenya and serving as a founding member of Microsoft4Africa. I understand the ambition behind investing in African engineering talent and the potential such investment can unlock.

My subsequent policy engagement reflected the same conviction: the right environment can attract investment, enable innovation and expand access to technology.

That journey makes this moment particularly poignant. Companies must make commercial decisions as priorities and markets change. But the human consequences and value built through years of investment in people must not be overlooked.

The question is not simply what happens to the jobs. It is what happens to the talent, experience and potential those jobs have helped develop.

Beyond the human impact

My concern extends beyond the uncertainty facing engineers and their families. It is also about the capabilities they represent and what these could mean for Africa’s economic future.

Through my board responsibilities, I see how digital technologies and artificial intelligence (AI) are reshaping business competitiveness across the continent. Businesses need people who can understand complex technologies, develop solutions and translate innovation into commercial value.

The expertise developed in an engineering environment such as the ADC can help African businesses improve productivity, develop new products and compete internationally.

These benefits can extend beyond the company that makes the investment. Engineers carry knowledge into new roles and ventures, and can become entrepreneurs, mentors and investors. But this requires opportunities to apply expertise, access to capital and a business environment that rewards innovation.

AI raises the stakes

AI makes these questions more urgent. AI is changing how software is developed, how businesses operate and where competitive advantage is created. It offers opportunities to accelerate innovation and improve productivity, while changing the capabilities required to compete.

For African businesses, the challenge is not simply to acquire AI tools. It is to apply them intelligently to local markets, data, processes and customer needs. That requires technical expertise to identify valuable problems, develop appropriate solutions, integrate technologies responsibly and translate them into measurable business outcomes.

AI could help African businesses develop services and address challenges in agriculture, healthcare, financial services and manufacturing. But access alone does not create value. Human expertise remains essential to defining problems, designing systems, evaluating outputs, managing risks and exercising judgement.

The ability to build with AI, rather than merely consume products built elsewhere, will be an important source of competitive advantage. The capabilities developed in engineering centres such as the ADC therefore matter not only for today’s technology industry, but also for Africa’s participation in the next phase of the global digital economy.

Can the continent mobilise these capabilities to develop its own products, businesses and intellectual property, and help shape technologies that will influence its future?

Creating innovation conditions

Attracting international technology investment is important, but it should be part of a broader ambition to build sustainable innovation ecosystems.

Governments must create conditions in which technology businesses can invest and grow: reliable digital infrastructure, appropriate regulation, technical education, research and development, and effective intellectual property protection.

My policy experience reinforced the importance of these connections. Intellectual property protection is not merely a legal consideration: it influences whether innovators can commercialise their work, whether investors can assess its value, and whether businesses have confidence to commit capital to new products.

Similarly, engagement around dynamic spectrum allocation demonstrated how policy and regulation can expand affordable broadband access. Connectivity creates opportunities to participate in the digital economy; a supportive innovation environment helps people create value within it.

In the AI era, policy must also address computing infrastructure, responsible access to data, research capacity and the ability of businesses to experiment and scale. Talent needs opportunities to flourish; investment needs a wider ecosystem to realise its benefits.

Businesses have a responsibility too. Digital transformation should rethink business models, develop products and improve productivity-not simply acquire technology or automate existing processes. Boards must connect technology and AI strategies to commercial outcomes, responsible risk management and the people needed to deliver them.

Building capability

None of this suggests that global technology companies should maintain every investment indefinitely, or that Africa should pursue technological self-sufficiency in isolation. International partnerships and access to global technologies remain essential. The objective should be to ensure they contribute to local capacity to innovate, develop intellectual property and build globally competitive businesses.

Success should be measured not only by jobs created or investment announced, but also by expertise developed, knowledge retained, enterprises established and value created by African innovators.

For engineers affected by developments at the ADC, the immediate priority is their future and that of their families. For African businesses, there is an opportunity to mobilise talent that can contribute to competitiveness. States and educational institutions must recognise that developing skilled people is only part of the task; creating conditions in which their skills can be productively applied is equally important.

There may, nevertheless, be a silver lining in this moment. The availability of highly skilled engineers with experience developing technology to global standards could represent a significant opportunity for African businesses and governments.

If mobilised effectively, these capabilities could accelerate corporate and public-sector digital transformation, strengthen AI adoption, modernise public services and help African enterprises develop more competitive products. This requires businesses, governments and investors to connect talent with meaningful opportunities.

The priority must remain the people and families affected. We should also recognise the opportunity to turn uncertainty into investment in Africa’s own technological capacity.

For me, this is both a human concern and a strategic imperative. The people affected matter. The capabilities they represent matter. And so does what we do next.

The opportunity is not simply to find these engineers their next jobs. It is to enable their expertise to help shape Africa’s digital future.

In a traditional home, a refrigerator keeps food cold until someone adjusts its settings, a washing machine runs on a manually selected programme, and a dishwasher completes the same cycle no matter how dirty the dishes are.

The person using the appliances makes most of the decisions. But in the next generation of homes, these routines could happen in the background. A refrigerator, for instance, will learn when a household opens its door most often and adjust its cooling performance accordingly, while a washing machine analyses a load’s fabric and dirt levels before deciding how to clean it.

A smart fridge could also recognise food items, track what is running low and help plan the next grocery shopping.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and data analytics are finding their way into everyday household appliances, as manufacturers seek to turn conventional machines into devices that learn from their users, adapt to changing conditions and optimise their performance over time.

The shift is part of efforts by home appliance manufacturers to make products more responsive to household routines, while promising consumers better energy efficiency, improved convenience and more personalised experiences.

South Korean technology giant LG, for example, says its washing machines use deep-learning technology – autonomously learning complex patterns and representations from large amounts of raw data.

This technology makes machines select washing motions based on fabric type and the level of soil, to clean clothes effectively while protecting delicate materials.

AI-enabled dryers can adjust drying time and temperature according to the weight, fabric type, and moisture levels of each load. The system can reduce drying time where possible and lower temperatures for garments that retain moisture, helping protect fabrics from excessive heat.

Similarly, dishwashers are being designed to detect how dirty dishes are and adjust parameters such as water temperature, rinse cycles, and detergent use to suit the load.

‘AI is a very human-centric technology, and home settings are one of the most personal and complex spaces where daily life happens. We aim to use it to understand homes better to cater to each customer’s lifestyle,’ Chaerim Ji, senior public relations manager for LG’s Home Appliance Solution business, recently said at an event in Seoul.

The tech giant says its refrigerator technology, for example, can analyse door-opening patterns over three weeks to establish when a household uses the appliance most frequently.

It then adjusts the compressor’s operation according to those patterns, with the aim of maintaining food freshness while reducing unnecessary energy consumption.

‘This data helps it adjust the compressor movement and the compressor’s output, so it gives more freshness and saves energy,’ Ms Ji said.

Rival Samsung is pursuing a similar approach with AI-powered food recognition, developed using Google’s Gemini technology, in refrigerators to help households manage their supplies.

It combines AI vision with cloud-based intelligence to identify fresh produce and packaged goods in the fridge. The firm says the system can also analyse usage patterns and notify users when frequently consumed items may need replenishing, making grocery planning easier and potentially reducing food waste.

Other manufacturers also building connected appliance ecosystems include GE Appliances, owned by China’s Haier, which has connected smart appliances with services including Google Assistant and Google Cloud.

Across the industry, manufacturers are combining sensors, machine learning, cloud services and mobile applications to enable appliances to communicate, receive software updates and offer additional features.

Through a smartphone app, users can monitor appliances, adjust settings and receive alerts, while manufacturers can deliver software upgrades that introduce new functions after a product has been purchased.

‘The technology also proactively monitors the product status and the user’s patterns to identify potential problems before they occur,’ Ms Ji said.

Beyond refrigerators and laundry machines, smart ovens can use saved preferences to simplify cooking, while robot vacuum cleaners can map room layouts and adjust their cleaning paths to improve coverage.

Kenya’s demand for household appliances has been supported by an expanding middle class and the availability of products through both physical retailers and online platforms.

The market has attracted global brands including LG, Samsung, and Germany’s Bosch, alongside local players such as Von.

Research firm Research Nester estimated Kenya’s home appliances market at $184.48 million (Sh23.9 billion) in 2018 and projected it to reach $363.92 million (Sh47.2 billion) by the end of 2027, representing a compound annual growth rate of 7.88 percent.

But analysts say AI-powered appliances raise questions about privacy and dependence on connected services.

Appliances that rely on cloud processing or mobile applications may require stable internet connectivity for some functions, while the collection of household usage patterns creates scrutiny about how such data is stored, used, and protected.

Buyers would also have to contend with security risks as was witnessed in early October 2026 when hackers who sabotaged refrigeration systems at hundreds of French supermarkets, exploiting the growing connectivity of equipment that was once largely mechanical.

Hackers are increasingly targeting internet connected gadgets and appliances including security cameras, washing machines, refrigerators, video doorbells, alarm systems, smart locks, thermostats and central ?heating systems

Medical bills are expected to rise 13 percent next year, beating the global average and Kenya’s inflation in a forecast that is set to put pressure on insurers to raise premiums.

London-headquartered professional services firm Aon says in its 2027 Global Medical Trend Rates Report that medical inflation in Kenya will reach 13 percent next year, moderating from 13.5 percent this year but remaining above the global average of nine percent.

Aon says the expected increase in the cost of treating patients and providing healthcare services is the product of an increase in the cost of basic needs or inflation, increased hospital visitations, a surge in drug costs, and a rise in imports.

‘The trend rate figures shown in this report represent the percentage increases in medical plan unit costs, both insured and self-insured, that are anticipated for the coming year,’ states Aon.

The rising medical costs could force insurers to increase premiums to match the swelling hospital bills.

The rising medical payouts have come on the back of escalating healthcare costs, increased hospital visits, and higher utilisation of outpatient and specialised services, leaving insurers weighing premium hikes, even as some have dropped some clients.

Medical costs such as consultation, laboratory tests and medicine have been on the rise, accelerating health inflation as major hospitals such as Nairobi Hospital pushed to charge insurers more.

Nairobi Hospital had rolled out an increase in prices ranging from 2.07 percent to 61.3 percent or between Sh70 and Sh5,000, affecting services such as computed tomography (CT scan), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), ultrasound, X-rays, bed charges and intensive care unit (ICU). However, it shelved the increment after uproar from insurers.

Employees under employer-backed medical plans could see their employers review medical benefits, potentially exposing them to higher co-payments, deductibles and out-of-pocket expenses as companies seek to contain the cost of providing healthcare coverage.

Kenya’s projected 13 percent increase will mark the first moderation of the pace in five years, with the rate having climbed from 9.8 percent in 2023 to 12.5 percent the following year and 13 percent in 2025.

Aon’s forecast, which estimates annual changes in the cost of employer-sponsored medical plans, draws on expectations from its professionals working with corporate clients and insurers in more than 100 markets across the world.

Kenya’s projected medical inflation also exceeds its expected general inflation rate of 5.9 percent by 7.1 percentage points, indicating that healthcare costs will continue rising much faster than the overall cost of living.

The increase is also higher than North America (9.2 percent), Asia-Pacific (9.7 percent) and Europe at 7.5 percent. Latin America and the Caribbean are projected to record a 10.4 percent increase.

The Middle East and Africa region is expected to post a 12.2 percent increase, down from 15.3 percent in 2026. Aon attributes the moderation largely to easing foreign exchange volatility and lower general inflation.

‘While medical trend is easing, it remains more than triple the rate of inflation. Companies must take a proactive, data-led approach to managing costs while protecting the value of employee benefits,’ said Michael Pedel, head of global benefits at Aon.

The report ranked Kenya ninth highest in projected medical inflation among 19 African markets covered.

Kenya’s projected rise in medical costs is below Ethiopia (35 percent), Angola (25.5 percent), Egypt (23 percent), Nigeria (20.9 percent), Zimbabwe (18 percent) and Ghana, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mauritius at 15 percent each.

Some of the African countries where employer-backed medical insurance schemes will see lower increases than Kenya include Côte d’Ivoire (10.3 percent), Zambia (10 percent), South Africa (9.8 percent), Tunisia (9 percent) and Botswana (8.5 percent).

Others are Lesotho (8 percent), Mozambique (7 percent), Uganda (7 percent), Morocco (6.5 percent) and Tanzania (5 percent).

Aon says the moderation in healthcare cost increases across Africa is largely driven by easing foreign exchange volatility and lower general inflation. However, dependence on imports and the rising prices of private and specialist care continue to keep medical cost increases in double digits.

‘The region [Africa] is still heavily impacted by the cost of imported pharmaceuticals, and the rising cost of private and specialist care is keeping the gross trend rate in the double digits,’ said Aon.

Beyond these market-specific pressures, Aon identifies chronic and lifestyle-related conditions as major drivers of medical plan costs globally. Cardiovascular disease remains the leading contributor, followed by cancer and hypertension.

Physical inactivity and obesity are key risk factors, while rising diabetes prevalence and newer prescription medicines are expected to add to future costs.

‘While the leading cost conditions remain unchanged, obesity and diabetes are becoming increasingly important drivers of future healthcare costs,’ said Kathryn Davis, vice-president and data and analytics leader, global benefits at Aon.

Simplifying sustainability implementation benefits organisations of all sizes. Large organisations need straightforward approaches that save time and reduce complexity, while small and medium-sized enterprises want solutions tailored to their circumstances without unnecessary requirements.

Although implementation will vary in scope and sophistication, simplicity remains essential. Fail-ure to simplify can increase costs and lead to scope creep. A streamlined approach aligns all levels of an organisation around sustainability ambitions, actions and accountability while clarifying stakeholders’ roles and responsibilities.

This improves focus and decision-making, reduces errors and costs, and increases the likelihood of completing sustainability projects on time and within budget.

One critical step is ensuring a free flow of information across the organisation and among stake-holders regarding sustainability plans, implementation and progress. Establishing a governance structure that delivers the right information to the right people at the right time is essential.

Capacity building should also be tailored to relevant stakeholders to promote alignment and ownership throughout the implementation process.

When information is restricted to a few individuals or fails to reach key stakeholders, implementation can become disorganised, complicated and costly.

This explains why some organisations dedicate specific teams and resources to coordinating sustainability initiatives.

Another important step is prioritising actions. Although seemingly straightforward, this can be challenging. Rather than overwhelming organisations with lengthy and complex plans, it is more effective to identify priority actions for each period and focus resources on delivering them be-fore addressing less urgent tasks.

Sustainability is a journey, and organisations are not expected to achieve everything at once.

Ranking actions according to their importance and potential impact should therefore be an ongoing exercise. This helps prevent decision paralysis, maintain focus and build momentum.

Ultimately, organisations that embrace simplicity gain clarity, use resources more effectively and deliver better sustainability outcomes.