While assenting into law the Urban Areas and Cities Amendment Bill, President Kenyatta commended the Senate for acting with speed in passing laws, which are intended to accelerate the efficient and quality service delivery to wananchi through the devolved units.
The new law would enable County Governments to review the criteria provided for classifying an area as a city, municipality, town or market centre.
Under the new law, the number of the resident population required for a city has been reduced by half, from 500,000 to 250,000 people.
The same law also allows a county to declare an urban area a municipality if it has a resident population of at least 50,000 residents while for an area to be declared a town it has to have at least a population of 10,000 residents and a market centre would only require a population of at least 2,000 residents.
The law proposes establishment of boards to govern and manage cities and municipalities and also outlines specific requirements of those who will be appointed to manage the concerned boards.
President Uhuru Kenyatta has signed the Energy Bill 2017
The new energy law among other things proposes the establishment of three key national energy entities to manage and regulate energy resources in the country.
The law establishes the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority, the Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy Corporation and the Nuclear Power and Energy Agency.
The Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority will be mandated to regulate generation, importation, exportation, transmission, distribution, supply and usage of electrical energy with the exception of licensing of nuclear facilities.
It will also be required to regulate importation, refining, exportation, transportation, storage and sale of petroleum and petroleum products with the exception of crude oil.
The Authority will also be required to manage production, conversion, distribution, supply, marketing and usage of renewable energy.
FILE | Rural Electrification Programme
The Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy Corporation shall be responsible for among other things to oversee the implementation of the Rural Electrification Programme, manage the Rural Electrification Programme Fund and also source for additional funds for the Rural Electrification Programme and renewable energy.
The Nuclear Power and Energy Agency will under the new law be mandated to propose policies and legislation necessary for the successful implementation of a nuclear power programme.
The agency would among other things be required to undertake extensive public education and awareness on Kenya’s nuclear power programme.
FILE | Oil exploration off the coast of Kenya
The 2017 Petroleum Bill that was assented into law by the President will among other things provide a framework for contracting, exploring, developing and producing petroleum.
The new law would also be used to formulate national petroleum policy and conduct petroleum operations. It will be a reference point in the establishment of petroleum institutions.
Under the new law, the national government, county governments and local communities shall receive a fair share of benefit from revenues emanating from petroleum operations.
A county government is to receive a share equivalent to twenty per cent of the national government’s share while local communities will receive a share equivalent to five per cent of the national government share.
Parliament is tasked with reviewing of percentages within ten years to take into consideration any adjustments needed.
Present during the signing of the three Bills were Speaker of the National Assembly Justin Muturi and his Senate counterpart Ken Lusaka, majority leader in the National Assembly Aden Duale, his Senate counterpart Kipchumba Murkomen, Senator James Orengo and the Clerk to The National Assembly Michael Sialai and his senate counterpart Jeremiah Nyegenye among others.
President Uhuru Kenyatta has today called for more mutually beneficial engagements between Kenya and Rwanda. The President said that the good relationship that exists between the two countries can be made better and more beneficial through people-to-people interactions. “The relationship between our two countries is probably the best,” the President said. “The more we meet, the more we interact, the better we integrate as a people,” he added. President Kenyatta spoke at the Rwanda Defence Forces (RDF) Combat Training Centre in Gabiro where he addressed over five hundred top government and private sector officials who are attending the national leadership retreat. The national leadership retreat is held annually and brings together leaders from all sectors of the Rwandan economy to discuss development programmes.
The President, who was on a short visit to Rwanda, said he was impressed by the national leadership retreat concept and promised to consider replicating it in Kenya. While citing Rwanda’s top ranking in the World Bank’s ease of doing business index, he noted that the country, under President Kagame, had risen from the devastation of war into a robust economy and a model of progress in Africa. “I am proud of how Rwanda has emerged from the challenges of its past into a model economy. Rwanda is one of Africa’s shining stars,” the President said. The President, who earlier held private talks with his host, said that Kenya and Rwanda have been able to achieve a lot together in recent years and challenged the people of the two sister countries to engage more. “As governments, we have been able to achieve so much. We have made it easier for our people and goods to move across our borders. We have created linkages in ICTs and in other areas,” the President said. Speaking on regional integration, President Kenyatta acknowledged that there exist challenges which need to be addressed and called on leaders to work together in fixing them. “It is true that we are faced with some challenges as neighbours and as a region. Through goodwill and good intentions, we will be able to resolve these challenges,” he said. He added: “We need to connect more. Rwanda alone, Kenya alone will not make it but together we have tremendous potential to succeed.” President Kagame thanked President Kenyatta for agreeing to speak at the retreat, saying the Kenyan leader is a true friend of Rwanda. “You know you can have a brother who is not your friend. In President Kenyatta, I have a brother who is also a friend,” the Rwandan leader said. On his way back to Nairobi, the President made a brief stopover in Uganda where he held private talks with President Yoweri Museveni at State House, Entebbe.
Vivo Energy Kenya has issued a notice over its demolished Shell Petrol Station said to have been constructed in Riparian land. The petrol station was brought down last year, together with an adjoining complex housing the Java Chain of restaurants and a chemist. The property worth billions of shillings was brought down by the Nairobi regeneration committee.
FILE: Demolitions at Shell Petrol station Kileleshwa
“VIVO wishes to notify the public that it owns a property with land reference number 4858/16 at Kileleshwa in Nairobi County” the statement says. The property which was intially a petrol service station was unfortunately demolished on 6th August 2018 and had been in operation for 48 years.
According to a notice cum statement advertised in the Daily Nation, purchase, charge or deal with the property does so at their own risk”, the firm says. VIVO Energy further warns that any acts of trespass on the property shall be countered with the full force of law, including both civil and criminal sanction.
Vivo also added that it will continue to provide reliable high quality products and services to its customers.The company distributes and markets shell-branded fuels and lubricants in Kenya. It is not clear why the title has not been revoked despite the Government position that the Petrol Station was on Riparian land.
Raging fires are destroying parts of Mount Kenya National Park and surrounding areas. So far they’ve affected almost 20,000 hectares of land and killed wildlife. Fires on Mount Kenya are a regular occurrence, but the size, number, and severity varies from year to year depending on weather conditions. Some years, very little of the mountain burns, while other years there are large fires. This year over 100 forest fires have been reported.
Mount Kenya is the second tallest mountain in Africa. It’s a world heritage site and contains an incredible wilderness made up of lakes, glaciers, dense forest, mineral springs and rare animals.
The majority of fires on Mount Kenya are caused by people when they clear land with fire for domestic animal grazing, to gather honey, for cannabis cultivation and charcoal production. Also open burning on nearby agricultural fields, to prepare for planting or after harvest, can cause fires to spread into natural vegetation on Mount Kenya.
But the most important factor that affects fire risk is weather. Under dry, windy conditions a small fire can easily spread and become difficult to extinguish.
In a recently published study on fires between 2004 to 2015 we set out to identify where fires were happening. We did this by using satellite imagedata. This has been used in the US before and can help provide burn severity information after a fire.
Detailed fire history information isn’t available for Mount Kenya, so we wanted to see if remote sensing techniques like these can provide some of the missing data.
By using these techniques we could help predict future fires and where preventative efforts should be focused. We found that fires, mostly caused by people, coincide with dry seasons and vary greatly in size.
Based on our findings, we make a number of recommendations that we believe could help manage the risks better. This includes implementing fire danger rating systems that would discourage activities at certain times of the year when there’s a major fire risk.
We found that the size of fires ranged from 150 hectares to almost 6000 hectares. The fires typically coincided with the two dry seasons (January to March and July to September), but most burned in the earlier dry season preceding the “long rains” (March to May).
This could explain the recent fires too. Since the region didn’t receive much rain during the 2018 “short rains” (October to December), the vegetation is probably very dry. Combined with hot weather and high winds that the area has experienced this year, it would be easy for a fire to ignite and spread – as we’ve seen.
Fire impact
Much of the vegetation on Mount Kenya is adapted to fire, like the Ericaceous Bushland. But there are still ecological effects that follow fire, like increased erosion and water runoff and wildlife losses.
The country’s water quality is also affected since Mount Kenya is the catchment area for the Tana River and Ewaso Nyiro River on which millions of Kenyans depend.
Combustion of vegetation reduces air quality by releasing harmful particulates and contributes to greenhouse gas emissions including carbon dioxide, methane, carbon monoxide, and nitrous oxide.
There are also long term implications.
While fire doesn’t necessarily lead to permanent forest loss, reduction in forest cover on Mount Kenya – one of Kenya’s water towers – has affected dry season water flows. This in turn impacts farming irrigation and hydroelectric power generation. The water towers are critical for Kenya’s water supply since the lower elevations are mostly arid or semiarid.
Preventing fires
Since most fires are human caused, the best way to prevent them would be better monitoring and enforcement of human activities on Mount Kenya. However, it’s a very large and remote area and management agencies don’t have the staff or resources to cover the whole mountain.
National maps are created on a daily basis and fire hazard conditions are posted on signs for visitors entering national parks and forests. Warnings include details about the safety of setting fires outside (for instance recreational campfires in the US). Such information would be useful in discouraging or prohibiting activities that pose a risk to major fires on Mount Kenya.
Air pollution is recognised as a major threat to human health worldwide. Nine out of ten people breathe polluted air, resulting in 7m premature deaths a year.
While air pollution respects no boundaries, and affects almost all of us, it impacts some populations more than others. Deaths attributed to air pollution are ten times more likely in low and middle income countries compared to high income countries. Sources of outdoor air pollution include industry, traffic and agriculture. Sources of indoor air pollution are mostly cooking and heating using solid fuels (including wood and charcoal).
Many people living in urban informal settlements (or slums) are exposed to high levels of indoor and outdoor air pollution. Despite efforts to tackle exposure levels, reductions in air pollution have not been observed. Life in an informal settlement is not easy and there are many daily challenges, of which air pollution is just one. If the choice is between using dirty fuel or not feeding your kids, then is there a choice?
Current approaches to reducing exposure to air pollution in informal settlements include awareness raising and campaigns on how to reduce exposure. But these methods have very little input from the people they target. As a result, they may have a low rate of acceptance. Campaigns also generally focus on one source of air pollution, but effective solutions and improvements to health need to take into account all sources of exposure.
And so community-centred approaches are needed to ensure an understanding of the local context and to explore concerns and challenges faced by residents. This will ensure that solutions are culturally relevant, inclusive and therefore more likely to be effective.
Mukuru, Nairobi
This is what we have been doing in Mukuru, which is an informal settlement in Nairobi, Kenya. More than 100,000 families live in crowded conditions with limited access to basic services. Exposure to air pollution can lead to respiratory infection, chronic lung disease, heart disease stroke and lung cancer. In Mukuru, exposure is continuous due to burning of rubbish and industrial emissions. The immediate effects reported by residents include burning eyes, sore nasal passages, coughing and asthma attacks.
Along with a series of interdisciplinary colleagues, we set up the AIR Network so that residents of Mukuru could work together with African and European researchers to explore how best to raise awareness and begin to develop solutions to tackle local air pollution issues. Our creative methods and the involvement of the community allowed us to recognise a series of sources of pollution that we might not have otherwise.
To minimise “Western” and “academic” preconceptions, which can result in a blinkered view, and to maximise engagement, trust and participation, our network used a variety of creative methods. These included theatre, storytelling, photography and drawing. We were determined from the start to create a democratic and participatory research project so that we could begin to understand the challenges that informal settlement dwellers encounter day to day, with the community deeply involved from the start.
We began with a week-long workshop in Mukuru. For many of us, the creative approaches used were novel and we became a collective, learning together – as well as laughing, eating, sharing and building trust. Barriers were broken down not just between community and researcher, but also between researchers from different disciplines.
Creating new tools
This is a community that is marginalised, with very few rights or regulations in place to protect them and limited access to basic resources. It is also a youthful community that is hugely self-motivated, bursting with talent, energy and activism. It is key that the voices of communities such as this are heard. The community educated us on which of the creative methods would work well in Mukuru, and for the next six months, we worked on putting our plans into action.
Our team included talented film makers, and we used digital storytelling to document personal experiences of air pollution. Here, for example, Dennis Waweru talks about the impact of air pollution on the health of his community.
Artists from the Mukuru-based Wajuuku Arts Centre painted maps on canvas and took these out into the community so that local residents could use them to identify pollution hotspots and pollution sources. Music was also highlighted as an effective and important communication tool. Local musicians and rappers composed songs to raise awareness about air pollution and the AIR Network itself.
We also used forum theatre (also known as theatre of the oppressed) to develop short plays about key air pollution problems in Mukuru, and then invite local people to become actors and explore potential solutions to the problems presented on stage.
These forum theatre plays were subsequently developed into legislative theatre pieces, which were performed to people in positions of influence or power. Audience members were then also invited to take part in playing out solutions to key air pollution issues, allowing a dialogue to develop between the “ordinary person” and the policy maker, shifting the usual direction of flow and breaking down existing hierarchies.
Industry, burning of waste and bad drainage were identified as key sources of air pollution in Mukuru. It turns out that dangerous unregulated working conditions and lack of protective clothing are a major cause of exposure. As is a lack of infrastructure for firefighting, waste disposal (the smoke and smell of burning plastic is constant) and sanitation (sewage was identified by residents as a major source of air pollution).
If we had gone into the community with aims and ambitions that had already been decided according to the commonly acknowledged causes of air pollution (traffic, industry, cooking methods) we may not have had space to reveal or acknowledge these other sources. Instead, we identified issues that the community recognises as indirect causes of air pollution, such as workers rights, alleyways between dwellings that are too narrow for fire-fighting equipment, and poor waste management.
In September 2018, these activities culminated in an arts festival, Hood2Hood, at the local football ground. A stage and a sound system appeared out of nowhere. Forum theatre and storytelling pieces were performed. Rappers, MCs and dance groups played live. A mural was created. Visual and interactive games were used to collect data. Around 1,500 local people attended the festival during the course of the day, to find out what we had been doing and to make their own contributions to discussions around air pollution.
Wickedly complex global problems such as air pollution, climate change and antimicrobial resistance can only be properly addressed by using multidisciplinary approaches, real world actionable strategies and buy in from the public. Using creativity is key: it allows non-experts to participate more fully in this process so that initiatives and interventions will be culturally relevant and more effective.
President Uhuru Kenyatta has said the Government will this year fully fund all national teams participating in international sports events.
He pointed out that sports, culture and arts are crucial to economic development of the country and therefore can no longer be left in the hands of well wishers to sponsor their activities.
“This year Harambee Stars will not beg or borrow but will be fully funded by the government, likewise our national rugby team, netball team and all other national teams will be fully sponsored by the government,” said President Kenyatta.
The President reiterated that all athletes will be sponsored and that they will no longer lack uniforms as they represent the nation in international sporting events.
“The new Sports, Arts and Social Development Fund will ensure no athlete is left behind,” said the President.
President Kenyatta was speaking this morning when he addressed over 25,000 participants of the 4th Edition of the Beyond Zero Half Marathon.
The President commended the First Lady for her efforts in helping mothers and children access quality healthcare services saying the initiative has highly contributed to the decrease of maternal and child mortality rates in the country.
“This is a noble initiative which goes a long way in assisting to achieve the national government agenda of zero maternal and child mortality,” said the President.
Former Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn and formerFirst Lady Roman Tesfaye participated in today’s race which attracted amateur and elite athletes as well as prominent Kenyans among them Deputy President William Ruto, Makueni Governor Kivutha Kibwana and his Nyandarua counterpart Francis Kimemia.
Josephat Bett and Brilliant Kipkoech won the 21km men and women’s races and were awarded cash prizes of Ksh 250,000 each.
In the 10km race where the First Lady competed, Vincent Ng’etich won the men’s event while Margaret Chelimo took the lead in the women category after beating Irene Kimais and Monica Ngige who came second and third respectively.
While thanking the participants for their commitment to the Beyond Zero initiative, the First Lady said proceeds from this year’s marathon will be invested in interventions aimed at advocating for policy formulation and protection so as to transform the lives of women and children.
“We dedicate it to babies – who are the future of this country. We dedicate it to our children, especially those living with physical and intellectual challenges – to advocate for inclusion and equal access to all services,” said the First Lady.
“We also dedicate this day to our elderly, our senior citizens, our grandparents – for their love and sacrifice to make what is Kenya today. We advocate for their recognition and social protection,” she added.
The First Lady said the pioneering concept of the marathon was inspired by the high rates of maternal and child mortality in the country.
She said through collective efforts, the initiative has been able to contribute to the prevention of deaths for thousands of mothers and babies due to lack of access to healthcare and medicines.
“Since we began running together six years ago, the concern has continued to capture the hearts of individuals, families, friends and communities across the country. Here today, we have teams from far and wide and I applaud you all for being part of this special day,” the First Lady said.
The First Lady pointed out that through the initiative, fully kitted mobile clinics have been purchased and delivered to all 47 counties in the country.
She said apart from contributing to the widespread awareness around health challenges facing women, children and vulnerable communities, the initiative started medical safaris to bring services closer to communities in hard to reach parts of the country.
Deputy President Ruto commended the First Lady for her relentless efforts in ensuring access to quality health services for women and children saying all Kenyans of goodwill should continue to support her noble efforts.
Former Ethiopian PM Desalegn lauded First Lady Margaret Kenyatta saying the entire region is inspired by her initiative which is worth emulating.
Others who spoke at the event included Heath CS Sicily Kariuki and her Sports counterpart Amb. Amina Mohamed.
Supporters of Beyond Zero today commemorated the International Women’s Day by raising funds in support of the marathon scheduled for Sunday. First Lady Margaret Kenyatta, who is the patron of Beyond Zero, received the financial support at State House, Nairobi, where over 20 organizations affirmed their continued support of her initiatives to make healthcare accessible to mothers, children and vulnerable populations across the country. Besides the cash donations, the First Lady received a Shs 50 million insurance cover for the over 25,000 participants expected to take part in the 4th edition of the First Lady’s Half Marathon and whose name has been changed to Beyond Zero Half Marathon (BZHM) 2019. The insurance pledge was given by Jubilee Insurance who also donated over Shs 3 million through the firm’s Regional Chief Executive Officer Julius Kipngetich. The insurance company will also mobilize doctors from 10 hospitals in Nairobi to be on standby for any emergencies during the Sunday event. Safaricom, the official communications sponsor of the marathon, brought in an open cheque under which they will provide a State-of-the-art media centre and communication support. Receiving the donations, the First Lady said the impact of Beyond Zero activities among them the recently initiated Medical Safaris has been transformational across the country. “Thank you for your continued support. We must continue this journey together,” the First Lady told the partners and supporters including Women in Business who gave over Shs 1.2 million and members of the National Assembly Lady Spouses Association (NALSA-K), who donated Shs 300,000. All the Chief Executives and team leaders of the over 20 corporates affirmed their support for the First Lady’s initiatives and pledged to mobilize hundreds of their employees to take part in the Sunday event. They said they had all been inspired by the First Lady’s desire for a better Kenya. The corporate executives said the initiatives by the First Lady had touched homes and families all over the country. The donors included Abbot, a healthcare technology provider, who gave over Sh 13 million. The Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) and the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) gave Shs 12 million each. Other donations came from Diamond Trust Bank Shs 10 million and Kwese Free Sports Shs 6.3 million. Britam Insurance , Grain Bulk Handlers and Babs Security gave Shs 5 million each. Kenya Power and Beta Healthcare International donated Shs 2 million each while the Ministry of Public Service gave Shs 1.6 million. The rest of the donations were given by Sports Kenya Shs 1.75 million and the Emergency Medical Services Shs 1.3 million. Kenya Revenue Authority, Vivo Energy, Murang’a County Government and Bidco Africa donated Shs 1 million each. The Beyond Zero Marathon will start and end at the Nyayo National Stadium and is divided into several categories including the 21km half marathon, the 10 km road race, the 5km family race, wheelchair and tricycle races and a special 2km “pregna” walk for expectant mothers. Earlier, First Lady Margaret Kenyatta held discussions with senior officials of the Dutch healthcare multinational Philips who visited her at State House, Nairobi.
The discussions centred on collaboration between the office of the First Lady and Philips in matters of health including a possible working arrangement towards the construction of the proposed Beyond Zero Referral Hospital for mothers and babies. The team from Philips included the Executive Vice President Ronald de Jong, CEO for Africa Jasper Westerink and the General Manager for Business Development Roelof Assies
Uganda’s Junior Minister for Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities, Godfrey Kiwanda Ssubi recently launched the “Miss Curvy Uganda” pageant at the Mistil Hotel in Kampala.
At the launch he claimed that the pageant was designed to boost Ugandan tourism by putting the bodies of curvy women on display. According to the minister, the pageant was expected to help Uganda increase the number of tourists to the targeted 4 million by 2020, from the 1.32 million received in 2017. The government is promoting tourism as a key sector to realise its ambitious economic plans set out in its national development plan.
But it’s questionable whether a pageant that’s clearly a ploy to maximise erotic capital, can help the country reach its development goals.
In our view it’s also a highly questionable strategy to use women’s bodies to attract tourists.
Uganda has used similar gimmicks before. In 2016 the same minister launched the Kampala Rolex Festival. A “rolex” is a Ugandan delicacy made of fried eggs wrapped in chapati (an unleavened flatbread). They are typically sold on the roadside.
The festival was intended to boost domestic tourism but the ministry has yet to measure its impact in terms of actual numbers.
The ministry is also running a parallel campaign dubbed Tulambule Uganda. Initially it targeted female celebrities with sizeable social media platforms in the hope that they would use their influence to promote domestic tourism. The campaign has only recently recruited male celebrities.
Our view is that the beauty pageant idea is denigrating to women. Uganda has great tourist attractions such as the iconic mountain gorillas, chimpanzees, lions, and giraffes; rich diversity of bird and insects species, and cultural and heritage tourism attractions. All are undervalued and undersold but should rightly form part of a comprehensive plan that attracts more tourists without exploiting women.
Misuse of female bodies
The Miss Curvy contest attracted a lot of local and international media attention. It also received a lot of resistance from human rights activists and civil society organisations nationally and internationally.
Uganda’s Parliament was divided about using a beauty pageant as a marketing tool for tourism. The men legislators were more supportive of the idea than the women.
Those against the idea criticised it for objectifying women and the fact that the pageant was designed to use their bodies as tourist attractions. One analogy was that the initiative was like a zoo in which women were being placed to satisfy the tourist gaze.
The minister was accused by different sections of the society including legislators, women activists, academia and local Ugandans of positioning Uganda as an exotic tourist destination based on the attractiveness of its curvy women.
We have naturally endowed, nice-looking women who are amazing to look at. Why don’t we use these people as a strategy to promote our tourism industry?
In our view this is an appalling exploitation and degradation of the dignity of women and girls.
Even Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni rejected the pageant idea, and denied that it had cabinet approval.
A number of civil society organisations described the pageant as sexist and a form of objectification, sexualisation, prejudice and exploitation of women for development purposes.
Some have argued that the pageant promotes the continued marginalisation of women in an already strongly patriarchal society. A press release by the Uganda Women’s Network, an umbrella organisation that brings together women focused organisations in the country, strongly condemned the pageant.
Women’s movement
Over the past three decades the women’s movement in Uganda has made tremendous strides in defending women’s rights. And there has been positive progress in various sectors. The biggest advances have been made in education, political engagements and representation, employment and legal rights. But a lot more still needs to be done, especially in health, resource access, and domestic violence arenas.
The biggest drivers of change have been a growing number of women-focused organisations as well as a national umbrella organisation, the Uganda Women’s Network that have been promoting gender equality and the empowerment of women.
A more enabling environment for women has also been facilitated by the pro-women legal and policy framework that guarantees the rights and dignity of women and girls. This is reflected in Uganda’s Constitution, the Uganda Gender Policy, and other affirmative action programmes.
But, there have been signs of a backlash that threatens to undo some of these positive outcomes. The proposed “Miss Curvy Uganda” is symptomatic of this push back, and it raises questions about the success of a decades long women’s empowerment movement.
Female dignity
Using women’s body’s to attract tourists is a direct assault on their personal dignity. It remains to be seen whether the overt objectification of women is an effective way to attract tourists.
We would suggest that Uganda’s marketing strategy would work better with a focus on the country’s natural and cultural diversity. Money would be better spent protecting our wildlife from poachers. The tourism ministry can also shift the tourist gaze to the richness of Uganda’s national heritage including traditional rituals, dances, ceremonies, and foods.
