UNICEF rolls out innovative way to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission in Kenya

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)) and Kenyan authorities today introduced into the East African country an innovative approach to preventing the transition of the HIV virus from mothers to their babies.
The initiative, launched by UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake, Kenyan government officials and other partners, includes a combination of interventions and supplies such as the “Mother-Baby-Pack” of antiretroviral drugs and antibiotics, which women can easily administer at home.

The “Mother-Baby-Pack” is part of the Government’s Maisha MTCT-free Zone Initiative designed to help eliminate mother-to-child-transmission (MTCT) of HIV and paediatric AIDS by 2013 in Kenya’s Nyanza and Rift Valley provinces, where about half of all children with HIV live, and by 2015 in the entire country.

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Kenyan Remittances Triple Amount Previously Estimated

Kenyans living abroad sent home $1.9 billion in the past 12 months, more than triple the amount previously estimated, according to a report by Bendixen and Amandi commissioned by the World Bank.

About 14 percent of Kenya’s adult population receive an average payment from abroad of $105 seven times a year, Sergio Bendixen, president of the U.S.-based market research company, told a meeting in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, today. Kenyans living in the U.S., U.K., United Arab Emirates, Tanzania and Uganda send home the most money, he said.

Bendixen and Amandi interviewed 2,423 people across the East African nation between July 14 and Sept. 4, according to a report handed to journalists. The survey had a margin of error of 2 percentage points.

Remittances in the seven months through July totaled $350.9 million, up 2.5 percent from the same period a year earlier, according to the Central Bank of Kenya’s website.

Reasons why the government’s calculation is lower include that remittances sent via informal channels are often under- counted and reporting standards for banks and money transfer operators are "weak," Edward al-Hussainy, a financial sector specialist with the World Bank, said at the event.

Money-Transfer

Western Union Co., MoneyGram International Inc. and Kenyan banks including Equity Bank Ltd. and Barclays Bank of Kenya Ltd. handle four-fifths of Kenya’s cross-border money-transfer business, Bendixen said. So-called "internal" remittances, which is money exchanged between family and friends within the country, is mainly transferred through mobile-phone services such as Safaricom Ltd.’s M-Pesa, Bendixen said.

Remittances to sub-Saharan Africa are expected to grow by about 2 percent in 2010, according to a World Bank statement handed to reporters today. No further details were provided.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-10-19/kenyan-remittances-triple-amount-previously-estimated.html

Experts say efforts to beat malaria may backfire

Efforts to eradicate malaria in some countries may be counter-productive, an international team of researchers suggest.

In the Lancet, they suggest some countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, may be better pursuing a policy of controlling the disease.

They also criticise the World Health Organization (WHO) for not providing adequate direction.

But a WHO spokesman said beating malaria must remain the ultimate goal.

'Noble' goal

The Lancet looks at the feasibility of eradicating malaria from the map, in the same way smallpox was conquered.

As the report points out, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation set the world such a target in 2007, an aim which was then endorsed by the WHO's Director-General Margaret Chan.

The Lancet concludes such a goal, while noble, "could lead to dangerous swings in funding and political commitment, in malaria and elsewhere".

And the WHO is accused of failing "to rise to their responsibilities to give the malaria community essential direction".

The series of articles instead urges a pragmatic approach in which efforts and resources are concentrated on shrinking the global area where malaria still prevails.

It suggests some countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, may be better pursuing a policy of controlling the disease rather than one of eradication.

The report's authors include Professor Richard Feacham of University of California's Global Health Group and researchers from the Clinton Health Access Initiative.

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Kenyan in top 15 at Miss World contest

Barely a day from the coronation night, Miss Kenya, Natasha Metto, won the Beauty with a Purpose Award which escalated her into the semifinals.Kenya’s representative at this year’s Miss World competition has made it to the top 15, ahead of the final on Saturday.

Ms Natasha Meto, 20, who clinched this year’s Miss Kenya title to proceed to the Miss World Kenya competition in Sanya, China was in a field of 119 beauties from different parts of the world.

In its 60th edition, the event will be held at the Beauty Crown Theatre, which was specially constructed to host the 2003 final.

The contestants flew to China early this month to prepare for the event whose theme is ‘Beauty with a Purpose’.

The contestants will compete in different fields from gracing the catwalk to showcasing their talents and other projects they have been undertaking.

This is not the first time Kenya has participated in this prestigious event. Previous participants, however, have never made it to the top five.

Among the most famous Kenyan contestants who did well at the finals are Ms Yolanda Masinde in 2000 and Ms Cecilia Mwangi in 2005.

Although they did not bring the crown home, they have used their crowns to enrich the society in different ways.

Ms Masinde is a teacher while Ms Mwangi is an IT professional and the face of the anti-jigger campaign.

http://www.nation.co.ke/News/Kenyan%20in%20top%2015%20at%20Miss%20World%20contest%20/-/1056/1043156/-/7v0hux/-/index.html

High alert in U.S. after suspicious package found in UK

At least two U.S. airports were on high alert Friday after investigators found a suspicious package on a plane in the United Kingdom the night before, a law enforcement source with detailed knowledge of the investigation said.

The suspicious package, which contained a "manipulated" toner cartridge, tested negative for explosive material, the source said, but it led to heightened inspection of arriving cargo flights in Newark, New Jersey, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and a UPS truck in New York.

Police also were investigating a suspicious package at the distribution center of an airport in East Midlands, in the United Kingdom, an airport spokesman said. Authorities said they could not immediately connect that investigation to the ones unfolding in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.

Authorities seemed most focused on inspecting cargo planes.

Investigators were examining two UPS planes that landed at Philadelphia International Airport and another at Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark, New Jersey, said Mike Mongeot, a UPS spokesman.

Authorities are focusing on flights coming from Yemen into the United States, according to the source.

The Transportation and Security Administration said authorities were acting "out of an abundance of caution."

"The planes were moved to a remote location where they are being met by law enforcement officials and swept," the administration said in a statement.

UPS said it is cooperating with authorities, and its shipment is being removed from the aircraft.

In Philadelphia, three people aboard one plane were removed from the plane and scanned with negative results, the Philadelphia Fire Department said. The type of material that may be involved is not known, officials said.

In Newark, investigators were examining another UPS plane, said Mike Mangot, a UPS spokesman.

In New York, the bomb squad responded to a report of a suspected explosive device inside a package aboard a UPS truck, the deputy police commissioner, Paul Browne, said.

Meanwhile, in the United Kingdom, police were investigating a reported suspicious package at the East Midlands Airport, an airport spokesman, Russell Craig said. The investigation caused minimal disruption and only affected the freight distribution area, he said.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/10/29/security.concern/index.html?hpt=T1&iref=BN1

Kenya's Wetangula steps aside over embassy allegations

Kenya's foreign minister has stepped aside amid a growing scandal involving the alleged misuse of his ministry's funds for several land deals abroad.

Moses Wetangula, who maintains his innocence, made his announcement as MPs were set to vote on his suspension.

A parliamentary report recommended his removal until claims over deals for new embassies were fully investigated.

Mr Wetangula is a key cabinet figure and helped to form the coalition in 2008 that ended the post-poll violence.

The scandal is the latest in a series of high-level corruption allegations involving government officials.

'Haunting and tormenting'

Mr Wetangula told reporters in the capital, Nairobi, that he felt he was being hounded from office.

"I have made a personal decision to step aside as minister of foreign affairs to give room and pleasure to those who have been haunting and tormenting me, and to give room for the investigation," he said.

"I can assure you I will be back to the cabinet once the investigations are completed because I know I am innocent."

According to a parliamentary committee report, Kenya lost $14m (£8.8m) during a land deal in Japan.

The foreign ministry is alleged to have refused an offer of land from the Japanese government in central Tokyo for a new embassy, opting instead for a building further away, against the advice of an estate agency.

Money was also allegedly lost on embassy deals in Egypt, Nigeria, Pakistan and Belgium.

Mr Wetangula, who will remain on half salary until the investigation is completed, is the latest high-profile figure to step aside because of corruption allegations.

Last week, Kenya's Higher Education Minister William Ruto was suspended, after a court ruled he must stand trial over corruption allegations.

Speaking at a separate function on Wednesday, President Mwai Kibaki reiterated that his government would not shield corrupt officials.

Donors have long criticised Kenya for failing to tackle corruption.

But correspondents say the passing of a new constitution in August has made it easier for the authorities to fight it.

The new law stipulates that anyone facing criminal charges should stand down from public office.

BBC

Welcome to the Future of Nairobi

Tatu City. Built with Passion. Powered by Vision.
Tatu City is a new city located within Greater Nairobi - a dynamic mixed-use environment that will be home to an estimated 62,000 residents who will have the opportunity to live-work-play within their community; as well as 23 000 day visitors.

Background
Nairobi, the largest multicultural city in Kenya, has a population of over three million people. It lies between Kampala and Mombasa, close to the Rift Valley. To the east are the Ngong hills, to the north Mount Kenya and Mount Kilimanjaro to the south-east. The Masai Mara and Amboselli game reserves are within easy reach.

Ruto in court over fraud claim

A Sh96 million fraud case against suspended minister William Ruto will be heard for 12 days in January.

And the first state witness will testify against Mr Ruto on January 24. This was communicated to Mr Ruto by Chief Magistrate Gilbert Mutembei on Tuesday when the politician attended court for the first time in relation to the case.

The state law office too said it intends to line up 34 witnesses to prove its case against Mr Ruto and four others. The others include Baringo Central MP Sammy Mwaita and former President Daniel Moi’s aide Joshua Kulei.

Mr Ruto and four other persons were appearing in court in relations to a case filed against them in 2004 in which KPC lost more than Sh272 million in the sale of the plot which was part of Ngong Forest.

Mr Ruto was charged with receiving Sh9.9 million, saying he was in a position to sell the land, belonging to the ministry of Environment and Natural Resources. He is alleged to have been paid another Sh57.8 million and Sh28 million for land in the same forest.
Case was never heard

However this case was never heard as the five filed a constitutional reference challenge their prosecution.

This constitutional reference was dismissed on October 15 and Mr Ruto ordered to face the criminal trial. And following this he lost his cabinet position.

On Tuesday, Mr Ruto appeared in court twice because he could not be given a hearing date in the morning due to a hitch involving his court file.

The file presented before the chief magistrate’s court did not have all the documents.

Mr Ruto and his co-accused had come to court following an order by the High Court on October 15 directing the case be taken to chief magistrate’s court to fix hearing dates.

The case will be heard on January 24 to 27, January 31 to February 3 and February 7 to 10.

Nation

Kenya mayor arrested over cemetery scandal

Kenya's mayor of Nairobi has been arrested for questioning in connection with a scandal over the sale of land for a graveyard in the capital.

Last week, Kenya's Higher Education Minister William Ruto was suspended, after a court ruled he must stand trial over corruption allegations.

Source BBC

Kenya's top graft-buster aims to prevent a repeat of the big financial scams that have bankrolled previous elections in east Africa's largest economy ahead of the 2012 general election.

Here are some facts on corruption in Kenya:

* Kenya's High Court last week ruled that Higher Education Minister William Ruto should stand trial over a scam involving the sale of forest land.

* Kenya ranked 146 out of 180 in Transparency International's 2009 corruption perceptions index, on a par with Russia and Zimbabwe.

* A Transparency International Index in July showed Kenya was east Africa's third most corrupt state after Burundi and Uganda. Kenya was previously judged east Africa's most corrupt country.

* The Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission (KACC) says graft and misuse of funds in government constitutes anywhere from 30 to 40 percent of the country's gross domestic product.

* The KACC has pledged to disrupt activities that could lead to losses of no less than 1.6 billion Kenya shillings ($19.79 million) this year alone.

* Television news has of late highlighted clips of government anti-corruption agents catching bribe-taking officials, including one of a police officer who took to her heels after being captured in a sting on traffic police.

* The KACC says that it has also netted "bigger fish" including an assistant commissioner for revenue and a senior official at Kenya Power & Lighting Company, a power distributor.

* Six permanent secretaries -- who are senior civil servants -- are facing charges resulting from Kenya's two infamous past scandals -- Goldenberg and Anglo Leasing, according to the KACC.

* Goldenberg alone led to the loss of at least $1 billion in central bank money via compensation payments for bogus gold and diamond exports prior to the 1992 election.

* The Anglo Leasing scandal, which started prior to the 2002 election, was first discovered in April 2004 when questions were raised in parliament about why the government overpaid on a tender for forgery-proof passports.

* The KACC says it has entered into agreements to help fight graft in the private sector across the east African region.

(Reporting by George Obulutsa; editing by James Macharia and Mark Heinrich)
(For more Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: af.reuters.com)

Standard Chartered Sees Kenyan Bank Lending Rates Falling 3%

Kenyan banks will probably cut lending rates by between two and three percentage points over the next 18 months as the cost of securing collateral falls and loan losses drop, Standard Chartered Plc’s local unit said.

“Interest rates will be in a downward trajectory for the next 12 to 18 months across the industry,” Richard Etemesi, chief executive officer of Standard Chartered’s Kenyan unit, said in an interview in the capital, Nairobi, today.

The Central Bank of Kenya has slashed the benchmark lending rate 2.5 percentage points to a record low of 6 percent since the start of last year in bid to spur economic growth. Over the same period, Kenyan commercial banks have kept their average lending rate little changed at about 14.18 percent in August, according central bank figures.

The bank, Kenya’s second-biggest by market value after Barclays Bank of Kenya Ltd., lends at rates of as low as 6.5 percent to multinational companies and as high as 14 percent for individual borrowers, he said.

Net non-performing loans at Kenyan banks fell to 2 percent of total loans in August from 2.9 percent in January, the Central Bank of Kenya said on Oct. 1.

Borrowers spend between 2 percent and 6 percent of the value of their loans in posting collateral, according to a study by research group Financial Sector Deepening Trust. The government is simplifying procedures to reduce the cost, Joseph Kinyua, Kenyan Treasury permanent secretary, said in March.

The bank’s first-half profit advanced 22 percent to 2.8 billion shillings ($34.8 million) as loan income increased, it said on Aug. 13.

Standard Chartered in Kenya is likely to record the “same level of momentum” into the second half of the financial year ending in December as mortgage-lending increases and loans to small and mid-sized businesses pick up, said Etemesi.

“We will see significant growth in all of our businesses and the balance sheet,” Etemesi said. Third-quarter earnings are expected to be announced on or about Oct. 28, he said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Sarah McGregor in Nairobi at Smcgregor5@bloomberg.netThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Antony Sguazzin at asguazzin@bloomberg.netThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Sh860m boost for Kenya school salaries

Schools will receive Sh860 million more to pay workers following a review of free learning funds.

The money, which goes up to Sh4 billion from Sh3.1 billion, will also cater for security, repairs and renovations starting this financial year.

Education Permanent Secretary James Ole Kiyiapi said the money, to pay secretaries, bursars and guards among others, had been increased from Sh370 to Sh470 per pupil annually.

Prof Kiyiapi also announced that the government had abandoned a system of allocating funds on the basis of the number of textbooks each school had it in its library.

Instead, allocations will be based on the number of pupils per school, as was the case until last year. Kenya’s 18,000 primary schools have 8.6 million pupils.

“Schools have bought a fair amount of books, so we feel comfortable with the change,” he said, adding however, that the allocation per pupil had not changed at Sh1,020.

This means money for textbooks and other materials has been cut from Sh650 to Sh550 per pupil per year.

Prof Kiyiapi said the government had scrapped the system of categorising schools, which determined the amount of free primary school funds each pupil was awarded for textbooks. “We will now allocate uniform amounts,” he said.

The move to group schools was introduced after a study revealed that some of them had more books than others. Others had lost textbooks and needed more cash to replace them.

Under the system, schools were allocated between Sh101 to Sh1,704 per pupil depending on book stocks.

Former Education minister Karega Mutahi said at the time that the move followed an audit showing that some schools had more books than others.

But Prof Kiyiapi said the method was abandoned because it was felt children should be treated equally. “We will now continue with a child-based system where all pupils are allocated similar amounts,” he said.

He said categorisation of schools was meant to ensure that funds for books and other learning materials had the greatest impact on the quality of education.

The move to scrap categorisation has been welcomed by school heads, who say it was discriminatory.

Nation

Meet the Kenyan baby with 28 teeth

The woman who gave birth to a baby boy with 28 teeth has spoken of her shock and fear moments after she realised her newborn’s dental anomaly.

30-year-old Martha Muthoni of Ndunduri village in Nyandarua County says she noticed the baby’s teeth after she felt it biting her when breastfeeding.

“I first saw his two front teeth,” she told Capital News on Friday.

“When I told my husband what I had seen, his initial reaction was to brush me off. But when I insisted and showed him our baby’s mouth, he freaked out, handed the baby back to me and walked away!” she said.

Three days later, the father had to report back to work in Nakuru which is quite a distant from Ndunduri village, leaving Ms Muthoni to take care of their new born baby James Mwangi.

Ms Muthoni who has three other children took her ‘miracle’ baby to the nearby dispensary where the clinical officer verified the natal teeth and referred them to the Nakuru Provincial General Hospital for specialised check-up.

“He advised me to bottle-feed the baby and I consented because baby Mwangi was now hurting my nipples with his teeth,” she said, speaking calmly to our correspondent.

“This phenomenon has baffled us all; even my parents are shocked because such a thing has never happened in our living memory!”

Neighbours have come forth to encourage Ms Muthoni although the entire village has turned its collective attention to her strange newborn.

“At first I even feared to enter the house, as I did not know what other powers the baby had,” narrated one close neighbour.

“But when I noticed how strong Muthoni was I decided to stand by her side. Now everybody is slowly coming to terms with the phenomenon and willing to accept baby Mwangi as one of us in this village.”

One Brazilian study in 1998 showed natal teeth were more common among girls.

Experts are still baffled as to what causes the anomaly but they say hereditary or family patterns do play a part.

Source: Capital FM

Microsoft will integrate Bing with Facebook search so searchers will get information from Facebook friends. Microsoft said the idea is to provide input from users' Facebook friends to make decisions like what movie to see. An analyst said the Bing-Facebook tie will have limited impact in the near term, but could bring a paradigm shift in the future.

sKenya minister to face fraud charges, court rules

Higher Education minister William Ruto will face a Sh96m fraud case following a ruling by a constitutional court Friday.

A three judge bench declined to grant Mr Ruto prayers in a case involving the sale of Ngong Forest land to the Kenya Pipeline Company nine years ago.

Through his lawyer, Katwa Kigen, Mr Ruto said the case was meant to finish him politically, was discriminatory and constituted an infringement of his rights.

Saying most of his prayers could not be granted, Justices Jeanne Gacheche, Roseyln Wendoh and Leonard Njagi said Mr Ruto should seek redress at the trial court.

The judges said that the case could not infringe on his rights since he was innocent unless the trial magistrate says otherwise.

Mr Kigen asked for certified copies of the ruling and leave to appeal, which was granted by the court.

Mr Ruto had moved to the higher court seeking to quash the charges on several grounds.

Source Nation

Justus Ogendi Kebabe

A woman and two of her children were found slain in their third-floor Vadnais Heights apartment, and the children’s father was arrested while fleeing south of the Twin Cities with another of the couple’s children, authorities said Thursday.

The bodies were found about 11:45 p.m. Wednesday by sheriff’s deputies at the Willow Ridge Apartments in the 1200 block of County Road D, according to the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office.

Justus Kebabe, 43, has confessed, said Sheriff Bob Fletcher, who added that Kebabe pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct after being arrested in December 2008 and charged with domestic assault against his wife.

A manner of death and the names of the victims haven’t been released. The mother was found in the bathroom, Fletcher said. The bodies of the children, ages 10 and 8, were each in separate rooms, Fletcher said.

Kenya Petroleum Refineries Plans to Raise Fees by as Much as 42% Next Year

Kenya Petroleum Refineries Ltd., the fuel processor owned by Essar Energy Plc and the Kenyan government, plans to raise fees by as much as 42 percent next year, said General Manager John Mruttu.

The cost of processing a barrel of oil will increase to $1.35 from $0.95 in January, while fuel-loading fees will increase by 33 percent to $6 a barrel in April, Mruttu said in a phone interview today from the Kenyan port city of Mombasa. Fuel-marketing companies in the East African nation have been sent a three-month notice of the planned increase, as required by the regulator, he said.

KPRL is raising fees to cover its operational costs and finance repairs to its facilities, Mruttu said. Ageing equipment at the refinery is contributing to fuel shortages, he said.

KenolKobil Ltd., Total Kenya Ltd., a unit of Paris-based Total SA, and Kenya Shell Ltd., a division of Royal Dutch Shell Plc, are among fuel-marketing companies that operate in Kenya. All licensed importers in the country are required by law to process 1.6 million metric tons of crude at the Kenyan refinery to meet 50 percent of the country’s refined-fuel needs.

Calls to the mobile phone of Charles Njogu, a spokesman for KenolKobil, weren’t answered and he didn’t immediately respond to an e-mailed request for comment. Total Kenya Managing Director Alexis Vovk was in a meeting, an assistant who declined to be identified, said by phone, and questions e-mailed to his office weren’t immediately answered.