Vol 66 No 8 | KENYA Ruto’s fiscal gamble – can he break the debt trap by 2027? 15th April 2025 Government looks to China and the UAE for funding as growth and revenues fall short and it bets on a pre-election spending boom At the heart of President William Ruto’s calculus ahead of his re-election bid in 2027 is a bet that Kenya’s economy will have recovered enough to allow him...
Vol 66 No 7 | KENYAWHO'S WHO Edwin Sifuna, 42-year-old youth activist 4th April 2025 Edwin Sifuna, Secretary-General of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) and Senator for Nairobi County, has cut a frustrated figure during the political manoeuvring that followed last June’s...
Vol 66 No 6 | KENYA Ex-rivals Ruto and Odinga tussle for power in new alliance 18th March 2025 A pact with his erstwhile foe may be the President’s best chance of winning the 2027 elections The great survivor of Kenyan politics, Raila Odinga, has an uncanny ability to turn every electoral defeat into a strategic victory. His failure to secure the position of...
Vol 66 No 6 | KENYA The queue to run the Commission 21st March 2025 Running the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission has been a poisoned chalice for those in the hot seat, but that did not stop a flood of applications that...
Vol 66 No 5 | KENYASUDANUNITED ARAB EMIRATES Hemeti struggles to launch in Nairobi, again 21st February 2025 As its ties strengthen with the United Arab Emirates, President Ruto’s government is helping Sudan’s RSF militia Kenyan diplomats and the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) under General Abdel Fattah al Burhan have waded into a new diplomatic row over plans by his rival General Mohamed...
DISPATCHES Vol 66 No 5 | KENYAUNITED STATES Why Washington’s aid freeze could cost tens of thousands of lives and livelihoods 3rd March 2025 Almost 40,000 people working on HIV-AIDS prevention have been put on unpaid leave and free drugs treatment stopped The follow-on effects of the United States’ foreign aid freeze are set to include patients with HIV/AIDs and tuberculosis in Kenya. Those patients will now have to pay... READ FOR FREE
Vol 66 No 5 | KENYA The anti-Ruto alliance 7th March 2025 Rarely do rival politicians celebrate new competition. Yet the launch of the People’s Liberation Party (PLP), the new party led by Martha Karua – Raila Odinga’s running mate...
Vol 66 No 4 | KENYA Making enemies of the press 21st February 2025 The country’s leading media group faces financial struggles and competition from social platforms, while foreign outlets expand in Nairobi A highly competitive and – by the region’s standards – vibrant media culture is among the legacies of Nation Media Group (NMG) founder and owner, Prince Shah Karim...
Vol 66 No 4 | KENYAAFRICAN UNION How diplomat Youssouf triumphed over politician Odinga in AU race 19th February 2025 Kenya’s hopes of chairing the AU were thwarted – a blow to its candidate and to President Ruto’s prospects of re-election in 2027 In the end, African leaders chose the diplomat over the politician. Djibouti’s Foreign Minister Mahmoud Ali Youssouf held off veteran Kenyan presidential candidate and dealmaker Raila Odinga to...
DISPATCHES Vol 66 No 4 | KENYA Treasury increases borrowing after admitting defeat on tax targets 18th February 2025 Mbadi has managed to reintroduce revenue measures from the Finance Bill without reigniting street activism but more than half of the expected gains have been lost Treasury ministers are paving the way to take on more debt in the coming months, starting with a US$1.5 billion supplementary budget to make up for missed tax... READ FOR FREE