NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 18 – A Western Kenya based sugar milling firm has expressed positive optimism on the local economy with a heavy investment on its production logistics infrastructure.

The Kakamega County based Butali Sugar Company has commissioned a fleet of 40 New Holland Tractors valued at Sh208 million to boost its cane development and haulage capacity; buoyed by a positive outlook on the local and regional economies.

Speaking at the firm’s factory when he received the new fleet of New Holland TS6 Series tractors from CMC Motors, Butali Sugar Company Managing Director, Sanjay Patel said the firm is investing heavily to optimize its field and production operations in line with the government Food Security programme.

With a raw cane crushing capacity of over 8,000 Tonnes of cane per day, Butali Sugar is currently rated as the single largest New Holland TS6 Series tractors customer in Africa and the Middle East with a fleet of 360 operational units.

According to Mr. Patel, the delivery of an additional 40 units now pushes the firm’s transport fleet to 400 operational tractors, significantly raising Butali Sugar Company’s capacity to serve more than 30,000 contracted out growers (through Butali Sugar Out Growers Ltd (BSOL) in the West Kenya sugar belt.)

In Western Kenya, Butali Sugar Company is reputed for its ability to pay farmers on a weekly basis for the cane collected.

The new fleet of 2-Wheel Drive New Holland tractors featuring purpose built wagons, Patel said, will be primarily used for the firm’s growing cane haulage needs from the members of BSOL to reduce wastage.

“At Butali Sugar, we are actively investing in such efficient and versatile transport options as part of our commitment to pass the benefits of an efficient production process to our customers and farmers,” Patel Said, adding that, “Our association with CMC Motors and New Holland Agriculture is founded on the delivery of proven performance tractors as well as reliable field and workshop service and parts that afford us a round the clock crushing guarantee to meet growing market demand for quality Butali Sugar products.”

Sold and serviced by CMC Motors Group in Kenya, New Holland tractors are manufactured by New Holland Agriculture, a brand of CNH Industrial N.V. (NYSE: CNHI /MI: CNHI) a global leader in the capital goods sector with established industrial experience, a wide range of products and a worldwide presence. New Holland Agriculture’s reputation is built on the success of their customers, cash crop producers, livestock farmers, contractors, vineyards, or grounds care professionals. They can count on the widest offering of innovative products and services: a full line of equipment, from tractors to harvesting, material handling equipment, complemented by tailored financial services from a specialist in agriculture. A highly professional global dealer network and New Holland’s commitment to excellence guarantees the ultimate customer experience for every customer.

Visiting New Holland Agriculture Middle East and Africa Region Business Manager, Mr. Yasin Seker, while acknowledging Butali Sugar as one of the largest New Holland Tractors operator in the continent and the Middle East, disclosed that periodic operating feedback received from the sugar company among other Kenyan customers, is playing a key role in New Holland Agriculture’s research and development (R&D) Programmes.

“It may come as surprise for many to note that Kenya is perhaps one of the most important market in Africa for New Holland Agriculture and is constantly providing crucial product improvement feedback to the product development teams. Such feedback to the R&D team plays a key role in the enhancing New Holland Agriculture’s overall commitment to continue innovating and adapting to market demands in support of our local distributors like CMC Motors Group,” Seker said.

CMC Motors Divisional Manager, Alexander Makaa noted that New Holland Agriculture’s formula for outstanding performance in agricultural and related accessories involves mixing raw power and superior control with the ultimate in customer flexibility. The TS 6 Series tractors, he said, are a natural choice for livestock, arable or related agricultural contracting applications.

The locally available New Holland Agriculture tractor models, he said feature a wide selection of transmissions and front axle options allowing customers to enhance their field productivity.

MUMBAI, India, Mar 20 – British mobile phone giant Vodafone’s Indian unit will merge with Idea Cellular to create India’s largest telecoms operator, the firms said Monday, as they combine to fight the rise of Reliance Jio.

“Vodafone Group Plc and Idea Cellular today announced that they have reached an agreement to combine their operations in India,” they said in a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

“The combined company would become the leading communications provider in India with almost 400 million customers, 35 percent customer market share and 41 percent revenue market share,” the statement added.

The confirmation ended months of speculation that the two operators were ready to sign a deal to help fend off Reliance Jio, whose recent arrival has shaken up India’s ultra-competitive mobile network market.

Reliance Jio is owned by India’s richest man Mukesh Ambani and has sparked a rush towards consolidation in the market since starting operations last year.

The 4G Jio network launched in September with an audacious free service for the rest of 2016, followed by vastly cheaper data plans and free voice calls for life.

It forced rivals to dramatically slash their tariffs and left them scrambling to match the deep pockets of Jio, which is backed by India’s hugely wealthy energy-to-chemicals conglomerate Reliance Industries.

Shares in Idea rose almost four percent in Mumbai following announcement of the deal, which will see the combined company overtake Bharti Airtel as India’s largest telecoms operator.

Vodafone will hold 45.1 percent of the merged entity after it transfers a 4.9 percent stake to Idea backers for 39 billion rupees ($579 million) in cash.

Idea will hold 26 percent in the combined company and the merger will take up two two years to complete. The agreement excludes Vodafone’s 42 percent stake in Indus Towers.

Market consolidation

The merged firm will be worth $23.2 billion, based on the combined enterprise value of $12.4 billion for Vodafone India and $10.8 billion for Idea Cellular, according to Bloomberg News.

The companies will be able to nominate three directors each, the statement said.

Global brokerage firm CLSA has estimated that the Vodafone-Idea tie-up would command a revenue market share of 43 percent by the start of the 2019-20 financial year, ahead of Airtel on 33 percent. Jio would have 13 percent.

Indian telecoms analyst Baburajan Kizhakedath said the two companies would make savings by merging but would come under pressure to reduce tariffs.

“The merged entity will not be able to withstand pressure from Jio because both Vodafone and Idea Cellular are not seen as aggressive as Jio and Bharti Airtel,” he told AFP.

The announcement is the latest move towards consolidation as telecommunication companies in India scramble to shore up their status or cut their losses and run in the face of Jio’s aggressive price war.

Norwegian multinational Telenor announced last month that it was selling up to Airtel, saying the amount of money needed to be competitive in the multi-billion dollar sector would not offer an acceptable level of return.

The withdrawal came after Videocon Telecom told subscribers in January that it planned to cease operations and pull out of the market. Aircel and Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) have sold up since the beginning of 2016.

Reliance Communications (Rel Comm) owned by Ambani’s younger brother Anil Ambani purchased Russian conglomerate Sistema’s Indian telecoms business, branded MTS, last year and is in talks with Tata Teleservices to join forces.

There were a dozen telecoms companies battling for Indian customers in 2010 but industry watchers say they expect that soon there will be only four ventures.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, Mar 28 – Amazon will acquire the Middle East’s largest online retailer Souq.com, the two companies said in a statement on Tuesday without disclosing the value of the deal.

The announcement comes a day after Dubai-based Emaar Malls confirmed offering $800 million to acquire Souq.com.

Amazon had walked away from talks with Souq.com earlier this year, but it reportedly came back with an offer of $650 million.

The deal is expected to be finalised this year “subject to closing conditions,” the statement said.

“We are guided by many of the same principles as Amazon, and this acquisition is a critical next step in growing our e-commerce presence on behalf of customers across the region,” said Souq.com chief executive officer and co-founder Ronaldo Mouchawar.

“By becoming part of the Amazon family, we’ll be able to vastly expand our delivery capabilities and customer selection much faster, as well as continue Amazon’s great track record of empowering sellers,” he said in the statement.

Amazon and Souq.com “share the same DNA,” Amazon’s senior vice president for international consumer Russ Grandinetti said in the statement.

“We’re both driven by customers, invention, and long-term thinking,” he said.

“We’re looking forward to both learning from and supporting them (Souq.com) with Amazon technology and global resources. And together, we’ll work hard to provide the best possible service for millions of customers in the Middle East,” he added.

Founded in 2005, the e-commerce site emerged as the highest-valued internet company in the region last year after a funding round raised more than $275 million.

Souq.com attracts over 45 million visits per month.

NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 28 – Is it possible to achieve a balance between work and life? Is it possible to have a life that includes a thriving career that’s full of ambition and still has time for yourself, your family and even your community?

While many people, especially women, see the balancing act as a daunting feat, some have pressed the right buttons and conquered all spheres of their lives.

Rose Lumumba, an advocate and founding member of the Women on Boards Network and IFC Corporate Governance Officer, says it is possible.

“If you are striving to strike a balance between your work and your life outside the office, the first thing you need to do is differentiate the four domains of your life. And what are they? First of all there is self, then there is your home, followed by your work and finally your community.”

According to Lumumba, who is also a life coach, the four domains have to be balanced if you are to lead a happy life.

She advises those seeking to strike the balance to first and foremost be intentional in what they do.

“You should be present, giving your all in whatever you are doing at different times of your schedule. Do not be at home with the intention of spending time with your children but you end up spending the entire time on your laptop finishing up your workload.”

Second, she cautions people to put themselves first. According to Lumumba, it is impossible to serve others when you are unkind to yourself. In her words, “you cannot give love to others when you do not love yourself.”

Third, Lumumba asks people, especially women, to know when to say no. She explains that far too many people say yes while they should have instead said no. “Know when to say yes to that new job opportunity, know when to say no to office load and go home to your family.”

Do your best

Fourth, be the best you can be at what you do. “This is not about perfection, it is about giving your ultimate best in all areas of your life.” On this, she recommends people not to walk around with guilt because of failure in one area of their life, but to rather embrace all these areas and put their very best into the different roles.

Fifth, block out time for work and play. “Do you have a technology free day? If not, create time for such. Get time to play with your children if you have them, go on dates with your spouse, take time and exercise, explore the world. Life is not all about work deadlines.”

Sixth, delegate. Lumumba, like most women, has fallen into the trap of attempting to be superhuman – to be everywhere doing everything, a move she says is wrong. She calls out to everyone, especially women, to delegate and allow others to help out.

Not Superwoman 

“You simply cannot try to be the one who cooks, cleans, looks after children, attends boardroom meetings, balances worksheets and supervises who came to work late. You need to divide your work and distribute it.”

Finally, Lumumba advises people to create appropriate boundaries around those four areas, cautioning against confusing and infusing them.

“The worst thing is to fail to draw boundaries. Office work shouldn’t come into your home, neither should the stresses of your home be carried into your job. You shouldn’t put your wellbeing on the line for your occupation. And you shouldn’t carry your private matters into your community.”

Have a successful week as you strive to strike that crucial balance!

NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 28 – They say disability is not inability, and true to this mantra, Charanpal Singh AKA Palo, is not giving up on his career as a mechanic any time soon despite being blind.

Palo, lost his eyesight in 2003 after suffering from Meningitis, which also affected his hearing ability.

Despite this, Palo is the senior mechanic at Range Rover Owners Club Kenya Garage in Ngara, Nairobi.

“I am not a fitter but a fixer,” he says smiling, “ fitters will do the work because either they have nothing else to do for an income or it is just a job. But for me, being a mechanic is my passion. It is in me. They had told me to start playing guitar after I became like this, but here I am.”

Before he lost his sight, Palo owned a garage in Nairobi but he, unfortunately, lost everything to people he thought were his friends. They took away everything.

However, all was not lost as he still had a friend who came in time of need, Aarif Gani. When Gani came back from UK in 2004, he looked for his friend and managed to encourage him to get back to his job despite his condition.

To this day, Gani believes his friend will see again and as he tells me, “I will leave everything to him.”

In our eighth episode of Respect The Hustle, Palo tells us how he manages to fix car especially engines using his hands and his intellect and why he still believes the sky is the limit.

NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 29 – Safaricom has announced that it will reduce all Lipa Na M-PESA Buy Goods merchant fee tariff by 50 percent beginning the first week of April.

Under the new tariff, merchants will be charged a maximum of 0.5 percent of the transaction amount, down from the previous maximum of 1 percent.

The merchants shall also be required to pay a flat fee of Sh200 for any payments above Sh40,000.
They will also receive all transactions of Sh200 and below at no cost.

Safaricom CEO Bob Collymore says the move is expected to boost the attractiveness of the Lipa Na M-PESA platform to more small and medium enterprises and make the service more affordable compared to other alternatives in the market.

The company says the changes target small and micro-businesses, such as kiosks, boda bodas, matatus, newspaper vendors, hawkers, hotels, restaurants and small eateries amongst others, sectors that are part of the informal sectors which employs 80 percent of Kenyans.

“Merchants will also enjoy the convenience of instant processing of payments made through Lipa Na M-PESA to their bank accounts, with the service now available at 23 participating banks. This will cut down the time that it takes to move money from a Lipa Na M-PESA till to a bank account from as much as 28 hours down to seconds,” Safaricom says in a statement.

M-PESA app

At the same time, Safaricom has announced the launch of the M-PESA app which will be integrated into the MySafaricom app, launched over a year ago.

The app will transactions to be conducted from the Android and iOS Smartphones and will target the company’s 24 million M-PESA customers.

“The app enables customers to select contacts from their phone when sending money and has a vastly improved implementation of the name search function Hakikisha – which allows the sender to confirm the recipient before the money is sent,” reads the statement.

“Customers will also be able to confirm the names of agents or businesses before sending or withdrawing money as they complete Lipa Na M-PESA transactions.”

NEW DELHI, India, Mar 29 – India’s top court Wednesday banned the sale of more than 800,000 new cars which fall short of new emissions standards, declaring public health more important than company profits.

The Supreme Court ordered a halt to the sale and registration of vehicles that will not meet new pollution standards come April 1, when a cleaner model of engine will become the norm.

The ruling is expected to affect as many as 824,000 vehicles not yet sold or registered, said the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).

“The health of the people is far, far more important than the commercial interests of the manufacturers or the loss that they are likely to suffer,” Judges MB Lokur and Deepak Gupta said in their order.

Millions of new cars pour onto India’s roads every year, worsening air pollution in cities that already rank as the world’s dirtiest.

New Delhi took the unenviable title of the world’s most polluted city in a 2014 survey of 1,600 cities around the globe by the World Health Organization.

Twelve other Indian cities also ranked in the top 20.

In a move to combat escalating pollution, the government announced in January last year that all vehicles sold in India would have to meet higher emissions standards from April 1, 2017.

In court, SIAM and automakers argued that they should “be given reasonable time to dispose of the existing stock” manufactured legally until March 31.

The court dismissed this appeal, saying car companies “chose to sit back and declined to take sufficient pro-active steps” despite the looming April deadline.

India, the world’s fifth biggest auto market, has said it will switch directly to BS-VI standards by April 2020, skipping the interim BS-V grading altogether.

Wednesday’s order was the latest to hit auto companies in India. In 2015 the same court ordered a moratorium on the registration of large diesel luxury cars in Delhi.

NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 31 – Africa Spirits Limited (ASL) has welcomed the tax proposals recently outlined by the National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich, in his Budget Statement.

The firm, which is the second biggest spirits maker by market share, notes that some of the Tax proposals will provide a good foundation to curb the sale of counterfeit alcoholic products.

In the 2017/2018 Budget Speech, delivered by the National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich, Alcoholic beverage manufacturers will now enjoy a graduated excise management goods tax rate; ranging from Sh0.50 to Sh2.5 depending on the cost of the product.

Previously, the Excisable Goods Management System (EGMS) has been applying a uniform cost of stamps irrespective of the cost of the product.

“The uniform charge for the stamps has brought challenges in respect of low-cost products.” He added.

“In order to enhance tax administration, regulations that provide for differentiated prices based on the cost of the product will be gazetted shortly.”

ASL Managing Director, Chris Lucas said the EGMS system, when properly implemented, would be a big win towards the fight against counterfeits and illicit liquor.

“The new security features on the new stamps that come with the EGMS system will make it easier for the Kenyan consumers to identify and choose safe alcoholic beverages. The eradication of the illicit and counterfeits drinks will also have a ripple effect on revenue generation for the government,” he said.

Africa Spirits and other industry players, Lucas said will continue to work closely with the KRA among other agencies to enhance the integrity of the products in the market.

“Our manufacturing process is centered on innovation. We use an advanced nonrefillable capping system for our range of products. Such tamper-proof nonrefillable capping systems provide much-needed quality assurance to the consumers guarding against product adulteration,” Lucas noted.

The company recently moved its operations to a new state of the art facility in Thika.

The bottling plant produces a variety of alcoholic beverages such as Bluemoon Vodka, Bluemoon flavors (apple, mango & Ginger), Legend Gold Brandy, Legend Black, Furaha Brandy, Furaha Gin and Gypsy King Gin.

NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 4 –  Centum Investments Director Dr. Chris Kirubi has welcomed the move by the government to raise tax for the Betting, Lottery, Gaming and Competition Industry to a standard 50 percent.

Kirubi says the move will be a wakeup call for the youth who put all their income on betting and gaming.

He urged Young Kenyans to instead work hard and save more in order to realize their potential.

“I am very happy that the government is going to tax (the sector) at 50 percent. I would have wanted them to put 80 per cent. Because if you are so stupid to go and put your money in somebody else hands and expect them to make you rich, you are crazy,” Kirubi said.

The proposed new tax will affect betting, which is currently taxed at 7.5 per cent, lottery at 15 per cent and gaming taxed at 12 percent.

“Don’t be baited. there is no free money anywhere. If you find free money, know that you are dreaming or you have gone crazy,” he stressed.

Rotich attributed the move to the negative consequences the industry has caused to young Kenyans, though it is not clear if winnings will be taxed.

The move comes even as Gem Member of Parliament Jakoyo Midiwo bill to introduce new and higher taxes on the gaming industry.

Gross revenues from the industry are estimated to be in the region of Sh3 billion and forecasts indicate that the industry will experience steady growth over the next five years.

Despite the steady growth of gambling in Kenya, the industry has faced several challenges such as low-profit margins as a result of high fixed costs, technological challenges, weak regulatory and institutional framework, intense competition, and an unclear tax policy.

NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 5 – 10 years ago, when M-Pesa was being launched in Kenya, Ismail Ahmed was in Nairobi working for the UN and closely following the debut of the mobile money service.

He instantly knew M-Pesa was going to be revolutionary when he started using the service. Four years later, he left the UN to start WorldRemit, a global money transfer service that has now grown to facilitate 600,000 transactions per month.

In January 2017, WorldRemit customers transferred more than $140m to Kenya, making WorldRemit one of the largest remittance companies serving the Kenyan diaspora.

Headquartered in London, WorldRemit has over 360 employees and is considered one of the fastest growing money transfer services sending money from 50 countries to 148 countries. The company has just closed $200 million in investments, 6 years after it make its fast transaction.

NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 6 – A web portal connecting SMEs and bigger firms with business opportunities has been launched in Kenya after a successful run in Ghana.

Invest in Africa – Kenya has launched the new platform that is aimed at enhancing the growth of Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs).

The platform dubbed African Partner Pool (APP) will allow larger organizations to issue tenders to the SMEs in different sectors while SMEs will be vetted and prepared to do business with listed companies and multinationals.

So far the platform has about 400 SMEs and hopes to have over 1000 SMEs in the platform in 2017 and over 10 large organizations apart from the current partners.

Among the current partners include Tullow Oil, Equity Group, Safaricom, Nation Media Group, EY, Shell, AMSCO, Kenya Investment Authority and Strathmore Business School, who signed a charter committing to support the growth of SMEs by providing commercial opportunities on the APP platform.

Invest in Africa Programme Director William Pollen says the organization targets deals to have deals worth Sh100 billion in the next 10 years.

“Our Long term vision by 2027 is to connect African SMEs, to $1 billion worth of contracts and in the process creating 100,000 jobs. Our target for tenders to be uploaded on to the platform this year is well in excess of 400 and we expect 250 0f those to be won by Kenyan SMEs,” Pollen explained.

He hopes that the Kenyan Charger will be as successful as the one in Ghana.

App was launched in Ghana in 2014.

“As with all technologies it takes a period for people to build confidence in using the tool, but over the last year we have seen quite a rapid improvement in the way it’s been received. We have 15 buyers, over 1600 SMEs using it (APP) to procure goods and services and we have got 79 deals on the APP totaling about Sh1.2 billion,” said Ghana APP Manager Ibrahima Aminu.

IIA-Kenya has been developing the African Partner Pool (APP) with the assistance of a Kenyan technical advisory team of procurement and ICT specialists.

“We are excited about the partners and encourage others to join the platform (www.appkenya.com). Through the tenders and opportunities made available by our partners, the capacity building offered as part of the APP alongside the networking space and events, and the financing options will lead to better outcomes for our businesses and entrepreneurs.” Pollen notes.

According to the “Barriers to Kenyan SMEs growth and investment” study undertaken by IIA and the Strathmore Business School in mid-2016, SMEs find it difficult to access the business opportunities available from their larger counterparts: conversely, Big Businesses often complain about finding reliable and trusted local SMEs that can deliver to meet their standards.

The APP’s vetted supplier pool will facilitate transparent business in a more timely and cost efficient manner.

WASHINGTON, United States, Apr 6 – Twitter on Thursday unveiled a low-data usage version of the social network, which aims to bring in users in emerging markets and areas with slow or expensive mobile networks.

The California group unveiled Twitter Lite, “making Twitter more accessible to millions of people,” said product manager Patrick Traughber.

“Twitter Lite is a great way for many people in emerging markets across Asia Pacific, Latin America and Africa to experience Twitter for the first time on their mobile devices.”

Traughber said the new mobile service can be accessed via web browser, and offers quick loading on slower connections, while taking little space on mobile phones.

The move comes with Twitter struggling to boost user growth and engagement to keep up with faster-growing social networks, and move toward profitability.

At the end of 2016, Twitter had some 319 million monthly active users, up just four percent from a year earlier.

Twitter made a push for users in India with the launch of the new service and a partnership with Vodafone at the start of the T20 cricket season.

“We are thrilled to partner with Vodafone in India to provide live cricket updates via a specially curated Twitter timeline to their smartphone customers as the T20 cricket season kicks off,” said Twitter’s Arvinder Gujral in a blog post.

“Cricket is one of the most talked about topics in India with over 10.6 million Tweets about the Indian Premier League (IPL) during last year’s season. This special Twitter timeline will feature top Tweets from cricket leagues, teams, players, and commentators to give cricket fans among Vodafone’s over 200 million subscribers across the country a compelling reason to use Twitter Lite to get real-time info and commentary about this popular sport.”

Twitter Lite can be accessed in 42 languages, according to the company including six Indic languages: Hindi, Bengali, Kannada, Tamil, Gujarati, and Marathi.

NEW DELHI, India, Apr 7 – India will buy nearly $2 billion worth of weapons technology from Israel in what’s being described as the “largest defence contract” ever signed by the military exporting giant.

The deal will see state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries provide India with an advanced defence system of medium-range surface-to-air missiles, launchers and communications technology, the company said in a statement Thursday.

The “mega” missile agreement is “considered to be the largest defense contract in Israel’s defense industries’ history”, the company said.

The Israeli firm will also supply a naval defence system including long-range surface-to-air missiles for India’s first aircraft carrier, which is still under construction.

Comment was not immediately available from India’s defence ministry.

Israel Aerospace Industries said some components will be assembled in India, in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s push to reduce reliance on costly imports.

Modi’s government has raised the limit on foreign investment in the defence sector and encouraged tie-ups between foreign and local companies under a ‘Make in India’ campaign.

India — the world’s largest defence importer — has been investing tens of billions in updating its Soviet-era military hardware to counter long-standing tensions with regional rivals China and Pakistan.

India has signed several big-ticket defence deals since Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party stormed to power in 2014.

Israel is a top weapons exporter, with sales last year surging to $6.5 billion.

India is a top market for its arms, as New Delhi has turned increasingly away from traditional ally Russia for its military hardware.

Last year India signed a contract to buy 36 Rafale twin-engine fighter jets from France for 7.9 billion euros ($8.8 billion) after major delays and obstacles over the cost and assembly of the planes in India.

NAIROBI, Kenya, 7 Apr – Nine Kenyan women are among this year’s 68 nominees of the New African Woman Awards.

Among those nominated include the proprietor of the first Kenyan-owned beer factory, Tabitha Karanja, CEO of Keroche Breweries, founder of one of the country’s biggest PR firms Gina Din-Kariuki and Kenya Women Holding CEO Jennifer Riria.

The list also includes the reigning 5,000m Olympic champion Vivian Cheruiyot and Oscar award winning actress Lupita Nyon’go.

Also nominated is the new UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed, Somalia’s first female presidential candidate Fadumo Dayib and Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

The women have been chosen from different categories that include business, education, politics, science, media and Sports among others.

The Awards, which kicked off last year, seek to celebrate and honour exceptional African women who have made a positive impact and contributions in their communities, and the continent at large, in the past 12 months.

Millennials…also known as Generation Y or Echo Boomers. They are the young employees at our workplaces who make the work environment very interesting. Currently, you will not walk into any office and fail to get one because they entail about 50% of our workforce.

Let me first take you through the transformation of the career generations at the workplace.

A while back, our offices were flooded with the traditionalist workforce. These are the workers who believe in the old systematic way or basically archaic methods to get work done. These are persons who follow work processes to the latter and are not really concerned with new methods that make work simpler.

After the traditionalists came the Baby Boomers. The only difference they had from their predecessors is that they are more of team players and are comfortable with verbal and personal interaction as a way of communication. More often than not, they follow what their leader says and are not known for challenging the status quo.

Succeeding the Baby Boomers is Generation X. With these individuals communication has taken a completely different course. They embrace technology, work independently and prefer to use voice and emails to convey their messages and ideas. They have been able to make the world a global village by use of new media.

As technology kept evolving, Generation X kept adopting new ways of working and communicating which gave rise to the Millennials. These are the current majority of workers in our offices. They are tech-savvy, have great ability to multi-task and their main motivation is to reach their own personal goals. They prefer an instant way of passing information; Instant messages, Instant emails, Instant video and voice calls, not forgetting the use of social media.

We must appreciate that it’s not easy working with or managing various generations at the workplace. Management are interested in results, profits, efficiency but these generations particularly the millennials feel that the workplace needs to accommodate them better.

How are we managing the workplace to make sure we accommodate these generations so that we increase efficiency?

The perception given to the Generation Y is that of lazy individuals who look for the easy way out and want ‘hand me downs’. The earlier generations might be skeptical about them but I feel if we give them a chance to lead and use their creativity, they will do well not only for themselves but for the workplace.

There is so much we can learn from this new breed of tech-savvy individuals. From my experience, sitting with them and giving them a chance to teach you new ways of getting work done actually improves the work relationship within the company. Take it from me, you can do with the energy, passion and creativity that they have. You may be wiser but they may be more effective. We need one another and it’s vital to create a working environment that supports the growth and development of these young people.

Remember, they need mentors and teachers who will guide them as they move up the corporate ladder. Be willing to teach but also be willing to learn.

While most companies do their best to embrace millennials, they too must do the same due diligence to their employers. Work cannot always be fun, games and social media. Learn to do more than what is required. Step out and show the world what drives you and how effective you can be. Leadership is earned over a period of time and is based on your actions. Listen, learn and value everyone around you.

I applaud those who have experienced the value of having a younger workforce and are doing their best to continue mentoring them and giving them opportunities.

Let’s be open to working together for the greater good of our society.

“Individual commitment to a group effort–that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work.” –Vince Lombardi

NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 13 – When I meet Julius Mulei, 30, at his shop in Nairobi Central Business District, he is busy packaging fruits to take to his customers.

Mulei, an orphan, is a boss of eight employees who together prepare and supply fruit salads to offices in the CBD.

The employees are partially the reason he wakes up every day and not give up on the business.

“Sometimes when I face so many challenges especially being harassed by ‘Kanjo’ (county council askaris) I feel like I want to close the shop and to something else away from them. But I ask myself, If I quit, where will these people go?”  he says.

Mulei started his small fruit shop with only Sh200 in 2012 and one employee. Five years down the line, he has a reason smile. At the moment he is able to buy stock worth Sh8,000 every morning, pay his employees at least Sh500 each per day and remain with a profit of Sh2000 on average.

Having studied automotive engineering, employment didn’t go well with him as he had to struggle to meet his daily needs, surviving hand to mouth due to low pay.

However, Mulei is proud to have achieved a lot with his business, including educating his only sibling through secondary to college level, as well as start a dairy farming in Makueni. He is also getting married soon. I got the invitation card!

In our ninth episode of Respect The Hustle, Mulei tells me how he has managed to overcome challenges as well as his plan to expand his business. He is seeking financial capital from the World Bank to upgrade his small business to medium level.

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates, Apr 19 – Oil-exporting cartel OPEC is optimistic that production cuts agreed with non-members to prop up prices will lead to a recovery in the market, its chief said on Wednesday.

“We are optimistic that the policy measures we have taken already place us on the path of recovery,” OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo said at an energy forum in Abu Dhabi.

OPEC members agreed in November to cut production by 1.2 million barrels per day for six months beginning from the start of the year.

Some non-cartel producers, led by Russia, joined in in December committing to cut output by 558 million bpd.

The OPEC chief did not take a position on whether oil ministers from participating countries would extend the cuts when they meet in Vienna next month.

“These 24 countries, I believe, will take a decision that will be in the best interest of not only producers but also consumers and the global industry in general,” he said.

OPEC and non-OPEC producers said after talks in Kuwait last month that they were looking into extending the output cuts, as compliance with the agreement has increased.

Barkindo said the joint action has put OPEC and other producers in the “driving seat” to dictate events instead of “reacting to market developments.”

The cuts were agreed to help restore market stability “by addressing one variable, which is stock,” he said.

“As a result of the rising stock over the past years, the equation has gone out of balance.”

All producers taking part in the cuts are committed to restoring stability, he said.

Oil prices have dropped by around half since 2014 and currently hover just above $50 per barrel.

NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 25 – Financial services group UAP Old Mutual is targeting to train at least 4000 Uber drivers on basic financial management.

This follows a long-term partnership between UAP Old Mutual and Uber aimed at empowering them with skills to manage their finances in order to grow their saving culture.

UAP Old Mutual Group MD Life business Jeremy Otieno said so far the training has benefited over 100 drivers in Nairobi and Mombasa.

“Once you get to understand your financial needs, then you are on the road to financial wellness. So we have partnered with Uber, to access their clientele, that’s the drivers, and we hope we shall empower these guys, to be able to make financial decisions from a point of knowledge,” Otieno said on Tuesday.

Otieno said the drivers can apply for the course online, adding that lack of planning and financial literacy skills could be solved via targeted education and skills development.

Apart from Kenya, the course which started in South Africa has also been extended to Ghana and Nigeria.

Uber East Africa General Manager Loic Amado noted that the course dubbed ‘On the Money’  is free to Uber driver-partners in Kenya, Nigeria and Ghana.

“By attending, they’ll learn to understand basic money principles, develop healthy savings habits and plan a path to financial well-being,” he said.

The workshops were previously run in partnership with Uber in South Africa with great results and positive feedback from the driver-partners who attended.

NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 26 – The use of social networking sites such as Facebook and Google+ was common across all enterprises in 2016 but tended to increase with the bigger enterprises.

This is according to the Enterprise ICT Survey conducted by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics and the Communications Authority of Kenya.

The use of social networking sites was reported by 79.0 percent of enterprises, with large enterprises leading at 87.3 percent while micro-enterprises using the least at 72.3 percent.

Microblogs such as Twitter were noted to provide avenues for rapid feedback with clients, with a significant portion of medium and large sized firms using them at 40.5 percent and 45.8 percent respectively.

Instant messaging such as WhatsApp was more common among micro and small enterprises with 49.1 percent and 44.1 percent using the service respectively.

Video and photo sites were used by a higher proportion of medium and large enterprises compared to micro and small enterprises.

The survey also found that 50.3 percent of enterprises had a website.

“Of these, a majority were large and medium-sized enterprises at 79.3 percent and 70.7 percent respectively,” says the report.

Broken down, information and communication had the largest proportion of firms with a website at 83.0 percent while construction had the lowest proportion of firms with a website at 30.5 percent.

WASHINGTON, Apr 27 – President Donald Trump on Wednesday told the leaders of NAFTA partners Canada and Mexico that the United States will not immediately move to exit the regional free trade agreement.

The announcement followed US media reports that Trump was considering giving formal notice of pulling the United States out of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

In phone calls to Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Trump “agreed not to terminate NAFTA at this time,” the White House said in a statement.

It added that “the leaders agreed to proceed swiftly, according to their required internal procedures, to enable the renegotiation of the NAFTA deal to the benefit of all three countries.”

Trump campaigned for president in 2016 on a platform that included renegotiating or abandoning the trade agreement, which he claimed was “the worst trade deal maybe ever signed anywhere” in a September debate with Hillary Clinton.

NAFTA was established January 1, 1994 under then-president Bill Clinton. It removes tariffs and allows a free flow of goods between the three partners.

Trump has repeatedly derided NAFTA as a “disaster” and claimed the deal resulted in millions of lost US industrial jobs, mostly to Mexico.

“It is my privilege to bring NAFTA up to date through renegotiation,” Trump said, according to the White House statement. “It is an honor to deal with both President Pena Nieto and Prime Minister Trudeau, and I believe that the end result will make all three countries stronger and better.”

Both conversations were “pleasant and productive,” the statement said.

The US trade deficit in goods and services last year with Mexico was $62 billion, but with Canada the US had a surplus of $8 billion.

‘Rumor’ of US exit from NAFTA

Two White House officials told the Politico news website on Wednesday that a draft executive order for the United States to exit NAFTA was in the final stages of review, and could be unveiled within a week or two. The New York Times had quoted a senior administration official saying Trump was likely to sign such an executive order.

But late Wednesday Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross brushed off the reports as “rumor.”

“There was a rumor today that there would be an executive order, just a rumor, and my practice is to comment on things we have actually done or are doing as opposed to commenting on rumors,” Ross said.

According to The Washington Post Trump is expected to tell Congress that he intends to re-negotiate the deal, but also hold the threat of exiting the agreement to gain more concessions from Mexico and Canada.

The administration’s talk of exiting NAFTA has run into opposition from several prominent Republican lawmakers, including border senators John McCain of Arizona and John Cornyn of Texas, Politico reported.

“I’d be glad to have renegotiation of some of the terms of it, because a lot of time has passed,” McCain told Politico. However a withdrawal would “be disgraceful and a disaster.”

Trade tension with Canada

The Trump administration has slapped tariffs in recent days on some imports of Canadian timber and threatened to retaliate against Canadian moves that harm US dairy farmers. Timber and milk, however, are not covered by NAFTA.

The softwood lumber dispute between Washington and Ottawa has been ongoing for at least 35 years, with US producers accusing their Canadian counterparts of exporting lumber at subsidized prices and harming US businesses.

Lumber is an important component of the massive US construction and home-building industry. Most US homes are made with wood framing and some entirely of wood.

Earlier this week, the US Commerce Department announced it was imposing tariffs of up to 24 percent on Canadian softwood lumber.

Canada’s dairy sector is protected by tariffs on imports and controls on domestic production as a way to support prices for the country’s farmers.

The latest dairy trade row was triggered when Canada extended those policies to apply to ultrafiltered milk, a product used in cheese production and at the center of a thriving US export business.