Latest News & Announcements

With turf wars over face masks and other personal protective equipment not yet over, the battle over who will be the first to get a COVID-19 vaccine seems to have begun. Earlier this week, Paul Hudson, CEO of French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi, told Bloomberg News that if Sanofi develops a vaccine, doses would likely go to Americans first. Hudson said this was understandable, given the U.S. had financially supported its research.

Kenyatta University has announced a suspension of salaries for staff on contract due to what it terms a decline in revenue attributed to the Covid-19 outbreak which has paralysed services in higher learning institutions. In an internal memo dated May 15, Deputy Vice Chancellor (Administration) Prof Fatuma Chege said staff on three-month contracts are paid using proceeds of the university’s income generating activities (IGAs).

Banks, saccos and micro-finance lenders now face a fine of Sh2 million for every defaulter they deny loans to for being listed negatively with the country’s credit reference bureaus (CRBs). This new regulation represents a fresh attempt to unlock credit to firms and workers hard hit by effects of coronavirus pandemic. The Treasury has introduced the fine in regulations aimed at cleaning up the CRBs blacklist and enhancing borrowers’ chances of being able to borrow more.

Thousands of health workers on Sunday agreed to suspend a strike notice that was to start Monday after reaching a deal with the government. The health workers’ leaders had held talks with the Ministry of Health officials on Friday and agreed to push forward the strike by 21 days to give room for discussion.

The Kenya Bureau of Standards(KEBS) has suspended the permits of 8 local hand sanitizer brands for failing to meet its requirements. In a statement, the regulatory body said the brands were identified after constant surveillance and were effectively banned for being potentially harmful to consumers.

“KEBS shall continue to undertake market surveillance and factory inspections. Substandard products found will be seized for destruction at the expense of the owner in addition to any other legal action as provided under the law,” the statement said.

Nairobi National Park has been shrinking with government and private developers slowly eating away areas GAZETTED for conservation. It's a story of forces that ranges from GREED to ABSURD. Animals have been squeezed into a corner. #BesiegedParadise was featured this past Sunday @ 9PM Citizen TV Kenya with @enocksikolia

Weed preventing COVID-19? That high hope seemed to rise from this headline: "Cannabis May Stop Coronavirus From Infecting People, Study Finds." The headline appeared on an article on MerryJane.com that was widely shared on Facebook. But readers should not get too excited.The post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)

Felix Orinda alias DJ Evolve is finally back home after being discharged from the hospital following a shooting incident at Nairobi’s B-club earlier this year. Taking to his Instagram account, the 27-year-old DJ broke the news to his fans, adding that he’ll be back despite his condition.

“Still have a long way to go, but I’ll be back. Thank you all for the well wishes,” said DJ Evolve. B-club management also shared a video on their official Instagram account and captioned it ‘Welcome back DJ Evolve.’

Kenya’s leading research institute has begun exploring efficacy of one of its herbal and traditional medicines likely to treat Covid-19. Kenya Medical Research Institute (Kemri) has identified Zedupex, an in-house herbal medicine used in the treatment of genital herpes -- a common viral disease that causes sores on the mouth and genitals.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has ordered a 21-day extension of the country's nationwide dusk-to-dawn curfew as the number of new daily COVID-19 infections hit a record rise, with 49 new cases registered.This now brings Kenya's COVID-19 infections to 830 and the death toll to 50.

In a briefing on Saturday, the president also extended a ban on travel into and out of Nairobi Metropolitan Area, the counties of Kilifi, Kwale, Mombasa and Mandera to the 6 June, 2020, the same date the curfew is expected to end.