The move by the countries biggest lenders to stringently impose new requirements has greatly compelled credit cooperatives to join bank borrowers who they had earlier vetoed.
President William Rutos financial inclusion agenda is seemingly taking shape, after the countries sacccos and cooperatives joined hands with the national payment system (NPS) in sustained efforts to lower the cost of credits.
Erstwhile, while saccos overly depended on banks to get funding together with other commercial services such as cheque processing and issuance the move might affect, to a big extent, the countries banks which have relied on these saccos for third party business like issuing of cheques.
Furthermore if the agenda goes on to succeed, banks will stand to loose as saccos will now have the capability and clearance to lend money to fellow saccos through the central liquidity facility (CLF) which is an equivalent of the interbank market.
The process to have these saccos sheltered under mainstream financial services has for a period of over seven years been made elusive by the sheer absence of the industries players to join hands and get to consensus on the matter.
Now, it’s a hot button issue in the country amid the soaring cost of living which has in turn increased the cost of borrowing including with saccos.
According to SASRA Sacco societies regulatory authority which has for a time now been helplessly watching the hiccups facing the sector, externally borrowed funds are in most instances expensive and often owe to changes in interest rates.
Now President Rutos administration has moved to prioritize the admission of saccos into the National Payment system as part of the governments financial inclusion agenda.
Crowds cheer at a campaign team during the 2022/general elections in South B. Leaders should aim at fulfilling their promises in bid to save future elections from an even more worse apathy. Photos by Ireri Steve on assignment for Agence France Press. AFP
Chogoria, Mountain region –“Wake up Steve, leli (not his real name) has won the election,” my mother roused me from my sleep on the night of August 10, after the announcement of the 2017 general elections. Those were the words I vividly remember that my mum let out as jubilation rented the markets’ air outside. The words I later on wished I hadn’t heard.
Leli, a leader with the excellence the people had been scouring for throughout the 2017 campaign period, had finally managed to secure the position albeit through thick and thin in a highly contested race. The people were glad that because of electing dishonorable people in previous elections, they had fallen culprit to the bonds of misery through abandonment and misuse of their money. The new leader was the ‘anointed one, a selfless, consecrated individual who wouldn’t buy to the appetites of a corrupt regime, -they believed and even confessed it.
Supporters of ODMs Polycarp Igathe jubilating in the streets of south B. Photo by Steve Ireri.
They expected happiness, but unfortunately their came suffering, accompanied by a brutal exchange of blames when the leader they had even called their ‘son, vanished deep inside the regime’s hidden chambers. He had forsaken them. No one ever believed he was capable of that. But he did it right at the front of their eyes.
The blame game tossed the country into chaos and into a war of words- and even worst, of weapons. The unforeseen neglect by an individual known as one with a gentle face, ‘who couldn’t even snatch a one shilling coin’ validated that the people had for sure mistaken on the best candidate for the position, the second or even third or fourth time in a row. His turnaround challenged the validity of the decisions most Kenyans made at the ballot. Hence most ended up convinced they made a blunder in their selections. Kenyans thereby proclaim the root of corruption and underdevelopment to the chronic culture of electing inappropriate aspirants. But is it?
In 2017, when Leli defeated some other bigwigs in the top seat he had been contesting for, he had exemplified himself as a helper, and a compassionate figure who even before vying for the seat had engaged in several acts of benevolence. And this made him a go-for, for many people as he had what they yearned for. Even his demeanor and his vows asserted he was eligible for the position. So, did the voters fail to elect a good leader?
They didn’t. Days later, while already in office, something mysterious happened and he changed. Although his sudden changeover might have been caused by some external factors of his new workplace, the fact remains that he changed and the citizens are not blame for it. Whether this transformation comes willingly or unwillingly, leaders must come into terms with one thing. They fail us. His appearances to the public became minimal just like the funds, and desperation begun to strike the people. Hence, while some would point their fingers to the election of unfit leaders, I disown it and point at the leaders susceptibility to the wave of transformation.
I believe my people had done everything to reign in a leader who would not have forsaken them. Given there is no means to accurately gauge whether a leader will stick to his vows once elected, the major task for voters is to cast the ballot and set a leader forward whether he is truly good or he is a hyena camouflaged in a sheep’s skin. Thereafter whether the chosen leader was good or bad, it should be the responsibility of the leader to rise to the demands and deliver. But that is afar none of their distressing concerns. Hence their grievous failure upon their most fundamental obligations.
Leaders in elective positions all this while are the rightful owners to the blames. They should feel the guilt for disappointing their people and their supporters, and think twice on the toll, their covetousness has fetched for Kenya as an East African powerhouse. When they allow history to keep repeating itself, Kenyans loose hope in not just an election, but one of the most important things in a democratic nation and proceed to deem their leaders as useless people drunk down by their greed. Presently, with apathy having donned the 2022 general elections people are losing hope in it at a fast rate and unless leaders bear the failure things might get worse.
Future of work as a Kenyan ruler.
Seemingly, it is so that aspirants who join the political elite with a pure attitude are recruited into the money laundering missions, purposely to create a safe haven for older and senior perpetrators. This is seen to by the circumstances of a workplace governed through dishonesty, which gradually gains victory over these submissive employees hence blindfolding them from noticing and getting bothered by the needs of their people.
The future of work for a Kenyan ruler despite being at loggerheads with the citizens at par, will get more tough and shadowy if it’s not rectified. Both the county and the National governments have been turned into a system where trustable leaders are intimidated to backslide and where the already-corrupt normalize duping peoples needs, to bloom their selfish ambitions. The future then will dock at a serious juncture where possibly citizens will never have a glimpse of the national cake, leave alone getting to lick a piece of it. And instead of growing to higher levels by day, the regime will jeep shrinking and through the leaders downfalls, end up costing the country a lot. Aspiring and incoming leaders should watch out on it’s corrupted climate even before they are in and prepare to withstand and rise over it.
The absence of trust with the countries calcified political elite, who are famous for their shifting alliances and endemic corruption, also is largely persuading many Kenyans to shun participating in election. And if elections will remain relevant in the future, leaders ought to commit to deliver in their duties.
Steve Ireri is a junior writer at the Kenya Management magazine . My focus is mainly on management and how well organisations are able to deal with the much changing workplace reforms.
Scotland is the worlds leading country with best hospitality services, beating other countries like the United states whose number of lavish hotels and inns is bigger and more refined. This clearly tells you that hospitality does not depend so much on how lavish or modernized the firm is but rather how reasonable and composed the clientele is. While hospitality demands a lot of concentration on things like etiquette, most countries just like most individuals here in the country assume it’s a small thing – contributing to the lag in Kenya’s hospitality achievement. Although the majority of African countries grapple with this area, foreign countries like the united states as well struggle to achieve the full range degree of hospitality. In Scotland however, the people practice it firsthand and the Scottish culture since the colonial era, revolves around being courteous hence their enviable triumph. The countries’ people’s natural command of discipline and etiquette has significantly translated to its success, producing very popular figures like Alex Ferguson who later on became the most successful British football manager.
While Ferguson was leaving the football career as a longstanding manager, he asserted that many things had contributed to his success but etiquette he said saw to it that he remained at the top. Alex who started his career at the age of 16 as a mere footballer worked hard like many other budding footballers but his extraordinary sense of discipline, brought him this coveted niche the majority of footballers never got to. The countries codes of parenthood which apply even in their schools strictly emphasizes that children learn the tricks of having a good command of etiquette not mainly for the sake of their prosperity but for their own good and satisfaction.
Listening.
Being able to listen to someone not just for the sake of hearing because you have to but for the sake of trying to help, is one of the top-tier virtues that have made Scotland a hospitality powerhouse. Whenever someone loses their way, he wouldn’t feel afraid to ask any person for directions as people aren’t used to misleading others or responding in harsh words. This should be the point to benchmark as the case in most African countries is very different. biggest problem that prevents this bit of hospitality from succeeding in the country is crime. Employees who fashion their rude demeanor always keeps guests away and locks the firm from making a step forward. Employees in the sector should at least learn how to listen actively which helps one build rapport and confidence with client’s.
Oral communication.
The prowess of most Kenyans in the hospitality industry is put into test in occasions when they face clients who can only speak foreign languages. Both written and spoken communication is very crucial in the process of charting a proficient hospitality business. Scotland has successfully achieved in this spectrum as most of its residents can speak more than five foreign languages leave alone the employees in the hospitality industry. The country in general boasts a language diversity of over 170 dialects which due to the welcoming nature of the people have been experimented with and can be spoken efficiently. Using body language and showing willingness to speak as they ensure their eyes are directly poked on the other persons eyes are some of the communication tricks that have up to date kept them at the peak.
Customer orientation.
Employees in a hotel or organization structures its image through their dealings with the hotels clients who mainly after their stay, will sit down and write a rating comment. This goes a long way in determining whether the firm makes progress or doesn’t. How they carry themselves and how they talk greatly infers the reviews your firm gets and whether that celebrity you hosted will want to book your hotel once again. It is therefore the duty of the employees to ensure they do everything that is within their power to see to it that customers are pleased. Great hospitality employees have a natural longing to please others, regardless of the time or day it is. They encounter fulfillment in making sure their guests have everything they need.
Stress tolerance.
Employees in the hospitality industry ought to have the resilience to withstand rude, impatient and unresponsive customers, as well as the rigors of working long shifts, often on their feet, and at the moment, probably in an understaffed establishment. When AA hospitality awards crowned several of Scottish restaurants for their exceptionality in the hospitality industry its obvious they were attracted by the talents of the hotels employees to maintain cool heads even after encountering several heated situations. Employees should be able to defuse a troublesome situation and remain calm and composed while they do it.
Quality orientation.
“I think Scottish people are driven by what we can do better, we’re driven by a pride in producing products of a very, very high caliber and it’s not just about what happened in the past and the heritage, it’s about what we are doing now and how we can do it better “says mark Hogarth the creative director of Harris tweed Hebrides a luxury fashion brand. Mark is at the forefront of the blossoming textile business in the country and opines that although in most occasion designers are compelled by their desire for profits, quality should always be a necessity with or without the profits. According to Mark, production of quality goods and services never ends in bad way as people will always prefer your services or products if you pledge to stick to quality.
Creativity.
Staff should be able to think fast and in a unique way until they catch the attention of their clients for the same if their employers. Creativity from employees is what in most cases places a certain hotel at the very top of the market as the management can think out of the box and offer something that the clients have never experienced elsewhere.
At a close spectrum, the role of women in law enforcement is under-looked given the daunting context of the assignments. Particularly men are on many occasions the cherished workers while women are discerned as their support personnel in law enforcement jobs. Although some women have went overboard to beat their male counterparts along their line of duty, their substantial function in the duty is shadowy and not easily distinguishable. In the past, the army was merely a reserve for men while women were trusted to handle other menial jobs that were less pendant on courage and body stamina.
This beges the question; Could there exist an advantage that the gender surpasses it’s male countdimension. “Yes, it does – absolutely,” said Major General Jami C. Shawley at the Africa region symposium on women in security. He asserts that women have an advantage in the enforcement of the law through their natural reconciliation feats, hence very pivotal in peace keeping and security.
In the previous years however, the number of women willing to undertake law enforcement and counterterrorism security has rose significantly prompting the United States departments of justice and state to make a move to facilitate the women into greater succession.
In the regional symposium that commenced June 27 2022 ending on the 1st of June, the U.S department of justice, the U.S department of state and the government of Kenya joined forces to explore their essence of women in security. The gathering, attended by approximately 70 security and law enforcement professionals from eight nations around the African continent, discussed more on enhancing regional and strategic objectives in empowering women as important, essential contributors to security, law enforcement, and counterterrorism.
Now with the weeks long forum women will significantly get a facelift in this line of work and get to understand agreeably, their distinct role in the realm. The symposium that brought together women leaders from 8 African countries, intended to provide a forum for African women in law enforcement lines of work, to undertake career development training, reinforce the growth of women in law enforcement while facilitating counterterrorism efforts.
“The Engaging Multinational Policewomen on Equality and Rights (EMPoWER) program represents the very best of the Department of Justice’s International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program (ICITAP)’s commitment to increasing women’s participation and leadership in law enforcement, which bolsters operational effectiveness, expands police institutions’ abilities to engage local communities, broadens the perspective of operating environments, and strengthens police response to crime,” said ICITAP Director Greg Ducot.
The summit exemplified a dire need for the support of more women to embark on the career. Previously while most women in the sector were hurdled in the offices mostly to handle paperworks, the forum’s presenter A.Army Major General Jami C. Shawley, clarified that women had an advantage in peace and security and given their enhancement they would help African nations in curbing terrorism and suitably executing the law.
Through the EmPOwer program the forum builds the capacity of women to combat terrorism by supporting them through leadership opportunities and inclusion in counterterrorism efforts. After successfully conducting the symposium in Croatia the ATA through the US embassy Nairobi Kenya, the US department of justice and the other bodies, amassed the country to garner more from professional women law enforcers.
The ATA program is the U.S. government’s exclusive counterterrorism training and equipment provider for foreign law enforcement agencies. As mandated by U.S. Congress, ATA should promote three policies has three foreign policy objectives: to build counterterrorism capacity of partner countries; to enhance bilateral relationships; and to increase respect for human rights.
ManagersMag 