Mombasa Info

Treasury Department triggers removal of Kenya’s electric wheelchair ahead of AGM

Sonia Martinez — Thu, 24 Nov 2022 03:03:31 +0000

companies

Treasury Department triggers removal of Kenya’s electric wheelchair ahead of AGM

Thursday, November 24, 2022

Kenya Power CEO Vivienne Yeda. FILE PHOTO | NMG

Kenya Power Chairwoman Vivienne Yeda will leave the utility after the Treasury Department decided not to support her re-election at the company’s annual general meeting scheduled for December 16.

Ms. Yeda, who was hired in November 2020 to lead Kenya Power’s turnaround, told investors she would be quitting on the day of the shareholders’ meeting.

Sources at the utility believe the new government was unhappy with its tenure at Kenya Power and its connections to top State House officials under the Uhuru government.

ALSO READ: Kenya Power CEO to be replaced in bid battle

Her departure will add to the instability in Kenya Power’s board and senior management that has resulted in directors resigning in rapid succession.

“We received a letter dated November 18 from the Treasury expressing the government’s desire to remove Vivienne as Kenya Power’s director,” said a senior Kenya Power official, who asked not to be identified. “Vivienne didn’t want to fight and withdrew.”

The Business Daily saw excerpts from the letter from the Ministry of Finance, which holds 51.01 per cent of the voting rights in Kenya Power, and requested a special notice on the agenda of the AGM calling for Ms Yeda’s dismissal.

Traditionally, a change in administration has often sparked tremors in semi-state circles as the president and ministers seek to exert their influence over state-run corporations previously used as centers of patronage by previous regimes.

ALSO READ: Local Firms Block Counter Tender for Kenya Power Sh2bn

William Ruto was sworn in as Kenya’s fifth President on September 13.

Ms. Yeda’s term was due to expire in November 2023.

“Ms. Vivienne Yeda has announced her resignation as Director effective as of the date of the AGM,” Kenya Power said in a public statement yesterday.

Ms. Yeda is also CEO of the East Africa Development Bank.

She joined Kenya Power in 2020 on a newly formed board tasked with restructuring the company and recovering the utility from losses.

In May, three directors – Elizabeth Rogo, Abdulrazaq Ali and Caroline Kittony-Waiyaki – appointed alongside Ms Yeda, resigned under unclear circumstances, leaving the utility with a shortage of independent board members.

The board departures came days after Kenya Power appointed a new acting chief executive, Geoffrey Waswa Muli, to replace Rosemary Oduor, who had served in the same capacity since August 2021.

The company said in the middle of this month Mr Muli would take over Ms Oduor immediately when she went on annual leave.

Ms. Oduor succeeded Bernard Ngugi, who also resigned last August.

Mr Ngugi became the fourth CEO in four years to leave the company amid a boardroom dispute that came months after the court dismissed a motion to remove him from previous procurement deals.

He had come under pressure from the board and shareholders for turnaround plans in the wake of a series of losses at the energy supplier. He resigned barely two years after being appointed to a three-year term.

Last year the Kenya Electrical Trades and Allied Workers Union (Ketawu) threatened to go on strike to press for the resignation of Ms Yeda and the three directors.

The strike threat came at a time when the anti-corruption watchdog had subpoenaed non-executive Kenya Power board members to include statements about procurement battles that had rocked that utility weeks after Mr Ngugi’s departure.

ALSO READ: Kenya Power Suspends Five Senior Managers Under Forensic Audit

A source for the company said the new board has taken an active role in management, including questioning sourcing decisions and abandoning management’s strategy of increasing tariffs, which officials believed would lift Kenya Power out of the red .

In July 2018, Kenya Power faced a crisis after its chief executive and several senior executives were arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit economic crimes and abuse of office. They all denied the allegations.

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The Kenyan central bank hikes interest rates to tame inflation

Sonia Martinez — Wed, 23 Nov 2022 15:06:00 +0000

By George Mwangi

Specially for Dow Jones Newswires

NAIROBI – Kenya‘s central bank raised interest rates on Wednesday in a bid to tame inflationary pressures.

The central bank raised its key interest rate by 50 basis points from 8.25% to 8.75%, the monetary policy committee said in its policy statement.

“Noting the ongoing inflationary pressures, heightened global risks and their potential impact on the domestic economy, the committee concluded that there is scope for further monetary tightening to anchor inflation expectations,” the bank said.

Kenya’s inflation rate accelerated to 9.6% in October from 9.2% in September, on the back of higher food and fuel prices, it said.

Food inflation rose to 15.8% in October from 15.5% in September, mainly due to prices of corn and milk following reduced supply due to poor rainfall, and cooking oils and wheat products due to the impact of international supply chain disruptions, it said.

Fuel inflation rose to 12.6% in October from 11.7% in September, mainly due to reductions in fuel subsidies, electricity price hikes due to higher tariffs and increased transportation costs, it said.

The committee will meet again in January but stands ready to meet again sooner if necessary, the bank said.

Write to Barcelona Editors at barcelonaeditors@dowjones.com

Kenya: Beneath The Baobabs Festival announces lineup for New Year party

Sonia Martinez — Tue, 22 Nov 2022 12:17:32 +0000

The two-day event spans four stages in the Enchanted Baobab Forest, with international headliners including British percussion house masters Melé, Ghana-based Oroko Radio founders Kikelomo and Nico Adomako, as well as London’s freshest underground crew and label Touching Bass.

Frank Is Frank of Shapes Festival was commissioned to curate a special closing session of the main stage.

“For over eight years, Beneath The Baobabs has continued to develop its relationships with alternative festival providers and build Kilifi into a mecca for East African artists, fans and audiophiles to celebrate the new year and the past together,” said Mathew Swallow, Creative Director of Beneath The Baobabs.

“We are a platform that brings different subcultures and groups together. We don’t look at any genre or demographic, and we enable growth for artist groups that may not be getting the support they deserve.”

As always, the 2022/23 festival program brings together respected names in the Kenyan electronic music scene, some of the freshest acts changing the game in East Africa and globally, as well as a range of international acts looking forward to engaging with the vibrant crowd of Kilifi.

Beneath The Baobabs Festival is set on 50 hectares of pristine, enchanted baobab forest, upstream of Takaungu Creek and 5km from the Indian Ocean. It’s the perfect tropical setting for a party and holiday experience, offering an immersive experience of contemporary and traditional Kenyan culture.

All four of the festival’s stages are built into the forest backdrop, supported by premium sound, lighting, floor performers, art installations and decoration, each playing a crucial role in providing audiences with a truly transformative experience.

Swallow added: “We welcome everyone. We want to show you that what we have to offer in Kenya is not only tourism but also art and expression.”

Check out the full Beneath The Baobabs 2022/23 lineup and buy your tickets here.

Route analysis: Mombasa-Dubai | routes

Sonia Martinez — Mon, 21 Nov 2022 11:52:00 +0000

Kenya Airways will launch non-stop flights from the coastal city of Mombasa (MBA) to Dubai (DXB) in the United Arab Emirates to meet leisure demand from the Middle East and Europe.

Service between destinations will begin December 15 and will operate four times a week using Boeing 737-800 aircraft. The airline will be the only airline on the 3,669 km (1,981 nm) sector once flights begin.

Data provided by OAG Schedules Analyzer shows that Kenya Airways plans to offer a Nairobi (NBO)-Mombasa-Dubai route and maintain its existing 10-times-weekly non-stop Nairobi-Dubai route, which is operated with a mix of 737-800 and 737 operates -8 sec

Flights depart Mombasa at 23:10 on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and arrive in Dubai at 05:45 the next day. The return leg leaves Dubai at 6:55am on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays and arrives in Mombasa at 11:20am

The two cities were last connected non-stop in March 2019, when Rwandair suspended its 3-times-weekly Kigali (KGL)-Mombasa-Dubai service to increase the Kigali-Dubai connection from 4-times-weekly to daily.

Rwandair’s exit from the market came shortly after Qatar Airways opened a four-times-weekly Doha (DOH)-Mombasa route, which operated with Airbus A320s from December 2018 until the outbreak of the pandemic in March 2020. Since then there have been no non-stop routes between Mombasa and the Middle East.

Kenya Airways caters to inbound leisure travelers to Mombasa, which is located in southeastern Kenya on the Indian Ocean. Freight will also be a factor providing increased cargo hold capacity for exporting seafood and fresh produce to the Middle East.

Looking at the traffic flow on the Qatar Airways service from Doha to Mombasa in 2019, 22,381 single passengers were traveling on the route. Of this, 94% of passengers traveled from destinations beyond Doha, with only 5.5% of the traffic being local.

MBA DXB

Carrier:	Kenya Airways
Airplane:	Boeing 737-800
Frequency:	4 times a week
Start date:	December 15, 2022
Distance:	3,669 km (1,981 nm)
O&D Transport Demand (2019):	24,425
Annual growth:	-26.2%
Average base rate (2019):	$148.65

Rwanda is terrified as Uganda, Kenya and the Democratic Republic of the Congo shake hands

Sonia Martinez — Mon, 21 Nov 2022 06:51:47 +0000

The Congolese Revolutionary Army, commonly referred to as the March 23 Movement or M23, is a rebel military force stationed in the eastern parts of Congo. They were driven to Rwanda and Uganda by Congolese and UN forces in 2012–2013 and pursued. The return of M23 in the current era has wreaked havoc in Congo. To increase its influence on the territory of its resource-rich neighbor, Rwanda has long supported the M23. But now that three African countries have joined forces to permanently crush the insurgency, the Rwandan government is cold.

According to recent reports, Uganda is sending 1,000 troops to the DRC to help the government fight rebel groups.

This decision was taken following the deployment of troops from Kenya to the DRC to support the fight against the M23 rebel organization in Goma, the capital of North Kivu province.

The Ugandan army, which is already at odds with the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a rebel group with bases in the country, has announced that it will deploy about 1,000 troops to the eastern Ituri region of the Democratic Republic of Congo before the end of the month becomes.

According to the Ugandan army spokesman Brigadier General Felix Kulaigye, the group intended for this mission has been in training for months. Plans to train and deploy this unit have been in the works since June this year.

The M-23 Movement:

Formed in 2012, the M23 claimed to defend the interests of Congolese Tutsis, a group sharing the ethnicity of Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame, against armed Hutu groups, and in the same year captured Goma, the largest city in eastern DR Congo. After a peace deal in 2013, many M23 fighters were integrated into the national military.

The group resumed fighting in late 2021 after years of lying dormant, accusing the government of failing to honor an agreement to integrate its fighters.

It has since seized much of North Kivu territory, including the key town of Bunagana on the Uganda border in June.

For months, M23 has been conducting its most sustained offensive in years, killing dozens and forcing at least 40,000 people to flee in just a week. Almost 200,000 people had been displaced before the latest wave of violence last year.

DR Congo has repeatedly accused Rwanda of supporting the rebels, a claim Rwanda has repeatedly denied.

Rwanda may claim no ties to the M-23 movement, but the data clearly shows otherwise. You see, a significant portion of the world’s reserves of cobalt, copper, diamonds, tantalum, tin and gold are found in Congo. It is the main export revenue stream of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Since M23 can help Rwanda access these reserves, it is quite conceivable that Rwanda will fund the organization for this purpose in order to quickly benefit from the minerals.

In addition, Rwanda has been exposed to cross-border smuggling of the minerals.

Rwanda accepts defeat?

However, the Rwandan government has started acting like a cat in a hot rocks as key African states like Kenya and Uganda join forces with the Democratic Republic of the Congo to take down M-23s. Recently, Kenya’s former President Uhuru Kenyatta went after Rwandan leader Paul Kagame over the need for M23 rebels to cease fire and withdraw from captured areas in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), according to the East African Community (EAC) bloc ).

This is a fundamental departure from Rwanda’s existing foreign policy agenda, make no mistake about it. It means, albeit ambiguously, that the Rwandan government has agreed to support the M-23 movement. Rwanda is scared and left alone while other powerful African states come to the DRC’s aid. The Rwandan government’s support for M-23 may soon end as isolation from its neighbors could be fatal for the country’s government at home and abroad. As such, without financial or military support from Rwanda, the M-23 could soon end up on the ash heap of history.

Ruto unveils the construction of a road linking Kenya and Tanzania

Sonia Martinez — Sat, 19 Nov 2022 11:24:21 +0000

BY WINNIE ATIENO

Kenya‘s President William Ruto has started construction of the Mtwapa-Kwa Kadzengo-Kilifi (A7) road, which will link Kenya and Tanzania.

The road is part of the Malindi-Lunga Lunga/Horohoro-Tanga-Bagamoyo East African Coastal Road Corridor which is linked at Sh7.5 billion (US$61.4 million).

Ruto pledged to place more emphasis on infrastructure developments to boost connectivity, trade and the tourism sector within the East African Community

“This is an important road between Kenya and Tanzania. It will boost trade and the economy between the two countries. It will unite the East African community in terms of integration, jobs, enterprise and poverty eradication,” the Kenyan leader said.

He was speaking in Mtwapa, Mombasa, where the first phase of construction of the 40km road began.

The head of state directed the country’s Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure and the Kenya Highway Authority to redesign Mtwapa.

business boom

Business between Kenya and Tanzania is expected to increase after the project goes live. The road will be completed within 36 months.

The corridor is being built through a grant from the African Development Bank (AfDB) in partnership with the African Development Fund, the EU-African Infrastructure Trust Fund Grant and the Government of Kenya.

“I thank our partners and I promise to ensure that resources are used properly and that nobody misuses the funds in our hands for infrastructure development,” added President Ruto.

AfDB representative Hussein Iman said the road is a crucial project connecting Kenya and Tanzania and will facilitate trade, accessibility and cross-border movement.

European Union Ambassador to Kenya Henriatte Geiger said roads are important for growth.

“This is a significant project that will improve connectivity,” she said.

boost tourism

Kilifi Governor Gideon Mung’aro said the road will also boost tourism.

“Tourists used to get stuck on this road due to traffic jams. The town of Mtwapa needed a facelift and the development of this road will boost trade in the area. We want Mtwapa to become a business center that operates 24 hours a day,” said Mr. Mung’aro.

Cabinet secretary for blue economy Salim Mvurya said the road will boost trade between Kenya and Tanzania.

Eric Latiff surprises fans with perfect Kalenjin accent as he addresses issues on Mombasa Road: ‘Waligula’

Sonia Martinez — Thu, 17 Nov 2022 06:14:03 +0000

Eric Latiff hilariously addressed Cabinet Secretary for Roads, Transport and Public Works Kipchumba Murkomen in a thick Kalenjin accent
Spice FM’s morning show host blamed the Kenya National Highway Authority (KenHa) for the run-down condition of Mombasa Road
TUKO.co.ke understands that the funniest comedians have inherently humorous attitudes, looks and accents and have attracted admirers of all ages

Spice FM presenter Eric Latiff has a special message for Cabinet Secretary for Roads, Transport and Public Works Kipchumba Murkomen regarding the Nairobi Expressway.

Spice FM host Eric Latiff surprised fans with a perfect Kalenjin accent. Photo: Eric Latiff.
Source: Facebook

While hilariously addressing Murkomen in a thick Kalenjin accent, Latiff accused the Kenya National Highway Authority (KenHa) of interfering with the structure of Mombasa Road during the construction of the Nairobi Express.

“Serikali ilitoa 9 billion KSh ya kutengeneza hii barabara ya chini ya Mombasa Road. Iligulwa, Waligula. (The government allocated KSh 9 billion for the project, but it was misappropriated),” Latiff said.

Eric Latiff points out the problems at Mombasa Road

During a morning talk show on Wednesday, November 16, Latiff said pedestrians were unable to walk because of the mud.

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“Hakuna stage, yote imebomolewa. Hii footbridge, ikitoka pande hii inaingia kwa mtaro hakuna mahali inaenda. Kipchumba Murkomen ongelesha hii watu yako wajenge hii barabara. Watu naumia, watu wanalia, iko machozi,” he added.

Freely translated as:

“There is no matatu stage, it has been torn down. The pedestrian bridge is in a run down condition. Kipchumba Murkomen is talking to your people to build this road because people are suffering, there are tears everywhere.”

Netizens react to Latiff’s Kalenjin accent

Here’s what netizens had to say:

Michael Ollinga Oruko said:

Woooohh… Kiplatiff iyo accent wewe ametandigah kama mursik kapsaa.

Macharia James wrote:

Good news, the road in Mombasa needs to be reconstructed earlier.

Travon Trevor said:

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There are so many comedians who have risen through the ranks and become household names in the industry.

The funniest comedians have naturally humorous attitudes, looks and accents and have attracted admirers of all ages. They will make you eagerly anticipate the upcoming video release.

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State of Tech layoffs in Kenya and abroad in 2022

Sonia Martinez — Wed, 16 Nov 2022 07:03:06 +0000

Internet companies around the world are having a tough time. This was confirmed by the number of layoffs, hiring freezes and investment freezes to develop new products and services.

Some of the world’s top tech companies have been hit, including Meta, which owns Facebook, Twitter, Amazon and Microsoft.

However, you might ask what’s going on? Well, there’s been talk of inflation, the war in Ukraine and a generally weak economy – all of which have affected these companies and others even outside of the tech space.

The pandemic has also accelerated this development – and the layoffs have been stronger after Elon Musk’s Twitter acquisition, and the billionaire fired more than 50 percent of the microblogging platform’s employees, although he has done so since admitted to having made a mistakeand brings back some of the laid-off workers.

THIS IS AN ONLINE STORY SO WE WILL UPDATE IT REGULARLY

Overall, it can be argued that the layoffs were motivated by revenue concerns these companies have as advertisers reassess their ad spend. Advertisers also fear a case of recession in a highly uncertain macroeconomic environment.

Which tech companies have laid off their employees for this purpose and how many people were affected? Well, here’s a list of the organizations we’ve been able to round up so far:

As of today, we got to know this ecommerce giant Amazon plans to lay off 10,000 employees this week. According to reports, some workers have been informed of this development so that they can take the necessary precautions. Amazon has also reported that it will pause on hiring companies.

Apple, the maker of iPhones and MacBooks, has also slowed hiring and will only fill necessary positions. So far, however, she has not fired anyone.

Twitter, of course, has received more media coverage thanks to its new owner, who is the richest person in the world. When Elon took over the platform, he laid off more than 50 percent of the staff. Up to 5,500 workers and contractors are said to have been laid off so far.

Meta, The company, which operates Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Oculus, has also announced job cuts affecting 11,000 workers. The company has had a very tough year that has been attractive to both users and advertisers. It was also in a platform battle with Tiktok, which it is no match for. Meta has also massively failed to push the Metaverse agenda.

chip manufacturer intel was not spared either. Apparently it is preparing layoffs this quarter. It also plans to reduce operating costs by up to $10 million. Reason? Well, the PC market is declining worldwide, which has negatively impacted Intel.

Patreon laid off 17 percent of its workforce (80 employees) at the beginning of September.

Google stopped half of its incubation projects. Some like Project Loon were dissolved in January 2021, affecting key markets like Kenya. More recently, incubator workers have been encouraged to look for new jobs and this has affected 1,400 workers.

Snapchat has laid off 20 percent of its workforce. It is also said to have canceled many projects related to the social media platform.

After laying off 260 workers crypt.com reportedly fired hundreds of other employees after August this year. in the same breath FTXa crypto exchange platform has since filed for bankruptcy after losing at least $1 billion of its customers’ money.

automaker Rivianwhich makes electric vehicles, some of which have found their way to Kenya, has now laid off 6 percent of its employees.

Streaming service in mid-2022 Netflix 300 people released. This was motivated by the loss of subscribers, but the company has since regained its numbers. It also has a free service in Kenya and plans to introduce ad-supported and cheaper plans to target more subscribers.

Around June this year also music streaming service Spotify also announced that it plans to cut hiring by 25 percent. Spotify, which has since launched in Kenya, is active in the African market and continues to experiment with new products.

Kenya

So far, some tech startups in Kenya have closed their businesses or laid off some of their employees.

Kune food closed shop after raising tens of millions of shillings. Before the closure in June 2022, 70 percent of the workforce had already been laid off.

Notify logistics also closed his shop. The company said it was unable to stay afloat due to high operating costs.

Last month, Send announced it had suspended utility services. It also came at a cost, as the company was forced to lay off 20 percent of its employees. It now focuses on fulfillment services.

We learned that too today Twiga Foods is reduced. With a workforce of 1000 employees, it is laying off some of them. Twiga will also downgrade some employee benefits. It also plans to upgrade its commercial development representatives to agents and plans to move operations to an agency model for the sales department.

Startups have had a rough time in 2022, and current trends are reportedly not going away anytime soon. It is also now evident that VC funding has been slow around the world. For example, the technology sector has reported poor performance, which in turn has limited VC’s ability to raise money. The general fallout has affected all other startups.

As said, these trends have been attributed to inflation and geopolitical conflicts. Central banks in different parts of the world have been everywhere trying to phase out the COVID-19-era stimulus that was reportedly accelerating valuations. Some have raised interest rates, with notable sell-offs in stock markets, even for startups. Development follows such companies to this day.

The slowing investment is not expected to end any time soon as the recovery from the economic crisis will take a long time.

Tech layoffs hurt workers in developing countries

Sonia Martinez — Tue, 15 Nov 2022 19:07:00 +0000

AAcross Silicon Valley, tech companies are shedding their workforces to cut costs in anticipation of a global economic downturn.

Social media giant Meta announced earlier this month that it was laying off 11,000 of its employees, or 13% of its workforce. Since being acquired by Elon Musk in October, Twitter has laid off about 3,000 employees, or about half of its workforce. Meanwhile, Amazon is reportedly preparing to cut 10,000 jobs. And Microsoft, Lyft and Stripe also recently announced smaller cuts.

But it’s not just programmers with six-figure salaries and free lunches in sunny California who are affected. In a sign of how globalized the tech economy has become, tech workers who are now making just dollars a day in parts of the developing world are also losing their jobs as outsourcing companies that have relied on Silicon Valley clients begin to cut their workforces to stay afloat. Most of these people earn a fraction of their US-based counterparts, and some worry that the slowdown in the tech industry could push them below the poverty line.

Continue reading: In Facebook’s African Sweatshop

Over the weekend, the tech-focused newsletter Platformer reported that Twitter had laid off 4,400 of its 5,500 employees at contractors, including content moderators, many of whom are employed by third parties in the Philippines.

Among the other workers affected by recent industry cuts are hundreds of workers at CloudFactory, an outsourcing firm with offices in Kenya and Nepal, which counted Microsoft among its 600 customers, according to its Nov. 14 website. The company told employees it would cut about 12% of its workforce on Nov. 9, according to internal filings obtained by TIME, which were previously unreported.

“The changing economy is affecting many technology companies, including our customers,” CloudFactory CEO Mark Sears wrote in a message to all employees verified by TIME. “Sales are way below target, we’re losing money and we need to cut our costs significantly to save cash and improve our operational efficiencies… I was overly optimistic about our client’s [sic] Willingness to continue spending on our services even when the economy is declining.”

The memo said exiting employees would be offered a severance package, but didn’t specify the amount.

On November 15, CloudFactory’s website said it employs more than 7,000 workers in Kenya and Nepal. CloudFactory declined a request for comment on the story on Nov. 14, but said Microsoft is not among its customers. The following day, the Microsoft logo no longer appeared in the customer list on CloudFactory’s website. (Microsoft did not immediately respond to a request for comment.)

An employee in Kenya, who spoke to TIME on condition of anonymity out of concern for future job prospects, said his job, which makes less than $50 a day, has been affected.

“Right now in Kenya it’s hard to find work… I see a lot of people going into depression because the situation in Kenya is really bad right now,” the worker told TIME. “I’m one of those people.”

In Nepal, where labor laws offer fewer protections for workers, affected CloudFactory employees were fired almost immediately, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. In Kenya, where workers are better protected, affected employees were asked to submit an “expression of interest” if they wanted to remain employed at the company and await a decision scheduled for November 17.

“I still have bills to pay, I have rent, I need food. It’s going to be really tough,” said the Kenyan employee involved. “Some of my colleagues have loans from banks. How are they supposed to serve them without jobs?”

Continue reading: Behind the TikTok Boom: A Legion of Traumatized Moderators for $10 a Day Content

The layoffs at CloudFactory reflect the rapid growth of the online outsourcing industry — known as cloudwork — in which tech companies assign simple but important tasks to workers in countries with high unemployment, low wages, and often lax health and safety regulations.

“The tech world extends well beyond Silicon Valley and its directly employed workers,” says Jonas Valente, a researcher at the Oxford Internet Institute’s Fairwork Project. “There’s a planetary workforce doing all sorts of jobs for tech companies. Full-time or part-time workers in outsourcing companies, particularly in countries in the Global South, typically have worse working conditions and worse contracts than those in big tech companies.” Valente adds that workers in countries with less protective labor laws often have little bargaining power and end up easier Targets for dismissal decisions can be.

According to the latest company reports, CloudFactory’s mission is to “connect 1 million talented people with meaningful work online”. The Kenyan employee involved was drawn to work at CloudFactory in part by the company’s focus on ethical and social values, but believes the company acted against them without warning in conducting this week’s layoffs. “We used to feel like family,” the person said. “All of this falls outside of the culture and principles that CloudFactory claims to have.”

The recent layoffs suggest that CloudFactory’s goal of connecting one million people to decent digital work is now further than ever. “It shows the precariousness of these jobs, but also the precariousness of the story that has been told, that these companies provide sustainable work,” says Phil Jones, a senior researcher at Autonomy, a think tank focused on the future of work. “In fact, much of this work is very volatile and can change as these companies evolve.”

More must-reads from TIME

write to Billy Perrigo at billy.perrigo@time.com.

Violence in Kenya: 5 main drivers of the decades-long conflict in the north and what to do about it

Sonia Martinez — Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:13:09 +0000

Kenyan soldiers.

Conflict and insecurity are widespread in northern Kenya. In recent weeks, incidents of bandit attacks in the area have terrorized villages and resulted in several deaths. In October 2022, the government launched a multi-agency security operation aimed at containing further attacks.

Northern Kenya is characterized by extensive wilderness, a harsh climate and a low level of development. The region borders Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan and Uganda.

Instances of conflict and insecurity range from attacks by gunmen and cattle rustlers to community disputes over resources and terrorism. The region covers about 60% of Kenya’s geographic territory. It is occupied by about 18% of the country’s population.

Pastoralism is the main economic activity. Others include irrigated agriculture, small business, and tourism-related activities. The region is largely isolated from the rest of the country due to poor infrastructure, including roads.

According to National Police Service crime statistics, between January and December 2021, 73% of the country’s stock-theft robberies took place in the northern region. During the same period, 58% of weapons seized illegally and handed over to the government came from northern Kenya.

The government – past and present – has conducted numerous operations to address violence in the region, which threatens Kenya’s overall security. But it did not work.

As a political scientist and conflict researcher, I’ve had the region on my radar for a long time. In my estimation, violent conflicts in northern Kenya are driven by five key factors that need to be addressed by both governmental and non-governmental agencies.

1. Regional inequality, exclusion and marginalization
Inequality between Kenya’s regions is caused by decades of political, economic and social exclusion and marginalization. This is a product of colonial and post-colonial state policies that have led to historic injustices and human rights violations.

Colonial authorities neglected the arid and semi-arid regions of Kenya, prioritizing the development of the country’s resource-endowed highlands. Successive governments after independence continued to pursue policies that further marginalized the North. This has damaged trust in state institutions and led to communal grievances that impede unity between groups.

Postcolonial state security actors have also disproportionately targeted Somali residents in counterinsurgency and counterterrorism operations in the north. The main terrorist threat comes from the Somalia-based al-Shabaab group.

In 2010, Kenya decentralized power, allocating resources and responsibilities to its 47 county governments. The aim was to improve service delivery at the regional level. While this has begun to address the marginalization of northern Kenya, repressive security operations continue to fuel intergroup conflict and radicalization to violent extremism. The use of force in these operations is disproportionately directed against marginalized communities.

2. Resource and environmental factors
Land disputes, access to grazing land and conflicts between pastoralists and farmers continue to fuel violence in northern Kenya.

Competition for scarce resources such as pasture, water and now oil has exacerbated these disputes.

Kenya announced that it had discovered oil in Turkana County in 2012. Oil exploration has created new tensions between the local Turkana and Pokot ethnic groups and within the Turkana community. Some members of the Turkana believe that the community has not benefited significantly from resource exploitation.

These communal conflicts are credited with increasing crimes such as muggers.

3. Political power struggles
Power struggles between politicians have fueled conflict along ethnic lines in the north.

Elected political offices are perceived as access to economic resources. The devolution of power to the districts along with political alliances has helped decentralize political power and the provision of basic services. However, they have intensified political competition at the local level. Politicians fuel inter-clan rivalries, escalate tensions, and erode the benefits of decentralization.

4. Cultural practices
Cultural practices contribute to violence in northern Kenya. These practices are mainly manifested through cattle rustling.

Cattle rustling and cattle rustling are driven in part by economic motives. This includes a desire to replenish herds that are depleted by lack of pasture and water during droughts. Cattle theft also offers an opportunity to make money trading stolen animals.

Cultural practices such as marriage arrangements also drive cattle rustling.

This affects the livelihoods of the community and the use of automatic weapons in raids has resulted in a high number of fatalities. State disarmament efforts have had little effect.

5. Proliferation of small arms and weapons
A large part of the arms proliferation in the region is caused by cross-border activities.

Kenya’s porous borders with Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan and Uganda have contributed to the rise of small arms, livestock trafficking, terrorism and other forms of organized crime.

State efforts to manage domestic and cross-border conflicts through repressive disarmament operations have instead increased tensions between border communities and the state.

The way forward

State security agencies have a constitutional mandate to use force to deter and suppress acts of violence that threaten national security. However, their methods are often formal and built on power.

Non-state actors, on the other hand, use informal methods that are widely accepted in local communities. They are based on mutual trust and are therefore considered more legitimate.

Both state and non-state actors have the resources, technical know-how and experience to address the root causes of conflict in Kenya’s northern region. A flexible approach that involves different actors can contribute to good governance on a broad basis and reduce conflicts and security incidents.

In this approach, all parties would work together to promote dialogue, education and peace-building. This includes ensuring inclusive political representation in traditional approaches to conflict resolution at the local level.

Written by Oscar Gakuo Mwangi, Associate Professor, Political Science, National University of Lesotho.

Republished with permission from The conversation. The original article can be found here.