KCB treading

KCB has lowered borrowing rates for a variety of retail loans by up to 5% and the move is already having a knockdown effect with customers, at other bank, asking for their loans rates to also be lowered likewise.

But for KCB, their intention is probably to accelerate their lending which has remained flat this year. From January to June 2006 their loan book is up less than 1%, compared to peers Barclays and Standard Charted whose loan books have increased by 7% and Equity Bank whose loan book increased 46% in the half year.

Card ping
CFC card account holders can receives SMS each time their MasterCard’s are used/charged.

School Finance Loans
(From Africa Intelligence )
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) will provide financing for private school institutions in Kenya, towards purchase of educational materials, and other capital expenditures under a formula which it inaugurated in Ghana last year.

On the flip side Bretton Woods Project offers six reasons why the World Bank (and IFC) should not finance educational projects

Kikwete Impresses

… The Economist (and George Bush)

While still very poor, Tanzania is set for 5.8% GDP growth this year and perhaps 6.7% next. A popular president, former foreign minister Jakaya Kikwete, hopes to build up the country’s sparse infrastructure, expand access to drinking water, and improve agricultural productivity. What’s so different about a president who makes big plans? Just this:

  • Mr Kikwete travels with minimal security.
  • He scrolls through several hundred text messages on his mobile phone each day, most of them from ordinary citizens who have somehow obtained his number. Sometimes he texts back.
  • He is clearheaded on international issues. He is happy to contribute three battalions to a prospective UN peacekeeping force in the Darfur region of Sudan, he says, so long as someone else foots the bill.

(From PSD blog)

But also troubling in the Economist is this article abut a possible threat to tourism at the Kenya coast from unstable elements in neighbouring Somalia.

Telkom Wireless

Previously

Telkom has finally launched wireless services using RUIM cards that are inserted into handheld or desk phones. The basic wireless phone is a Huawei model that retails for about 9,000 shillings while a line (RUIM card) costs another 1,000.

The service is available in Nairobi only for now – roughly covering the area between Mlolongo to Ruaraka, to Banana Hill to Kikuyu and Langata.

Local calls are billed at 7 shillings per minute, calls to mobile at 24/= per minute (billed every 10 seconds), calls to Flashcom/Popote will be at 14/= and international VIOP 888 will be at 15/= per minute.

Data can be obtained (via dialup) at 3 shillings per minute.

You can use Telkom phone cards (denominations of 200, 500 and 1,000) to top up.

But it appears SMS is only possible with other Telkom wireless phones and billed at 2.50 each. Maybe Safaricom & Celtel have not allowed outsiders’ access to their subscribers.

Verdict: A humble start without much fanfare. Expect some teething pains and the savings and possibilities will take a few months to become apparent. As Shiroh noted, peer pressure and word of mouth are key drivers for people to try new services.

Other Observations

Banking
– Did Kenya and other country banks violate laws by sharing bank data with US authorities on SWIFT transactions?
(From Dealbreaker)
– An Islamic bank will open branches in Nairobi and Mombasa by year end running full Sharia principled banking.
– Postbank is implementing a new business model for next year

Other
– The first public Kengen AGM will be held at Kasarani gymnasium in November. I’d have held it at Masinga or Turkwell dams or Olkaria.
– Is Safaricom using VoIP for its help line? When/If you ever get through the call quality is very poor
– Saw a CCK monitoring vehicle driving round the city this week. Perhaps trying to trace some illegal signals?

September 30 jobs

appearing in the daily papers this week

Various from Abbott.

Tenders & project management advisor at Actionaid International . Apply to tpma.jhb@actionaid.org by 13 November.

(3) Project managers at Bridgeworks Africa: i.e. animal health, human health, and plant health. Apply to Africa@bridgeworks.ch by October 13.

Administrative accountant at Coopers Kenya Apply to fin_recruit@cooeprs.co.ke by 5 October.

Eveready East Africa: Internal auditor – apply to auditor@evereay.co.ke, plant accountant – apply to accountant@eveready.co.ke, maintenance planner – apply to planner@eveready.co.ke by October 9.

No jobs in Kenya, but seeking Kenyans to work for them in other countries was Haliburton‘s global engineering subsidiary – KBR.

Management trainees (front office, housekeeping, F&B) at Hilton Nairobi. Apply to nbohitwhrd@hilton.com

Project manager at KEMRI/Welcome Trust. Details at www.kilifi.kemri-wellcome.org and deadline is October 13.

Kenya Airways: investigation specialist, freight & production development executive and claims officer. Apply to the group HRD P O Box 19002 Nairobi by October 13.

Chief executive officer at the Kenya Book Foundation. Apply to drs@clubinternetk.com by 20 October.

Youth program coordinator and youth program assistant at the Kenya community development foundation. Apply to jobs@kcdfoundation.org

Principal human rights officer, investigator, media & communications officer, human rights officer (Wajir) at the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights. Apply to haki@knchr.org by October 6.

Business and other news writers at the Kenya Times newspaper.

Infrastructure manager at modern business communications MBC. Apply to info@mbckenya.com by 13 October.

Compliance adviser at Standard Chartered Bank. Apply to purity.mureithi@ke.standardchartered.com by October 13.

Finance/HR SAP administrator at SNV. Apply to esa@snvworld.org by October 11.

Programme officer – enhanced security unit at UNDP> Apply to jobs.ke@undp.org

National professional officer at UNESCO Nairobi office. Apply to vacancy.nairobi@unesco.org

National program officer at UNFPA Kenya office. Apply to recruit.unfpa@undp.org by October 5.

Development program assistant at USAID. Apply to hrnairobi@usaid.gov by October 13.

Consultant fundraiser at Waldorf School Trust. Apply to waldorftrust@nbi.ispkenya.com

Business facilitators at World Vision Apply to recruit_kenya@wvi.org by October 5.

Credit Reference Kenya

The Finance Bill expected to be passed early in 2007 will require banks to share information on non-performing loans and bad debts through credit reference bureaus. Previously.