Having relocated from Nairobi to Lagos in January 2013, I have settled down, and gotten more or less used to living here. Apartment, car, driver, etc., are already in place, and I dare commend my own…
Browsing Category Business
My blog posts and external op-eds/articles on business-related topics
Konza Technology City
Konza Technology City – Africa’s “Silicon Savannah” Konza Technology City, dubbed “Africa’s Silicon Savannah”, some 60km from Nairobi, is one of the most publicized elements of Kenya’s Vision 2030. The US $10bn project aims to…
Kenya strikes oil in Turkana!
Oil in Turkana: A Curse or a Blessing for Kenya? On March 26th, 2012, President Mwai Kibaki made an historic announcement: Kenya has struck oil in Turkana County! The announcement had barely been made before…
Jon Bøhmer sees his solar project — Kyoto Energy — go bankrupt!
Jon Bøhmer saw his award-winning solar energy company, Kyoto Energy go down on April 6th, 2011, as the court in Norway ordered liquidation
DHL = Delivery Happens Leisurely!
Less than 3 weeks to clear another zero-rated consignment. That must be a new record for DHL! After the Kyoto Flash solar torchlights, which DHL took a month to get through Customs, we received the…
Mobile warfare in Kenya
Breakneck competition between Kenya’s mobile operators Whenever a text message pops in these days, I pray it is not more spam from the operator. Too often, it is. Safaricom and Zain seem to have gone…
DHL + Customs = a lethal mix!
DHL + Customs: A Recipe for Delays While I was successfully bullying the dreaded container of Kyoto Box solar cookers through Customs in Mombasa, people from the same useless government institution were doing their best…
Container nightmare – a 21st century Kafka tale!
Attempting to bring a container into Kenya can give you several heart attacks, and is by no means a recommendable exercise for any sound-minded person who cares about his mental well-being. Had Franz Kafka been alive today, he would doubtlessly have agreed that Kenyan bureaucracy by far eclipses his nightmarish descriptions of their counterparts in the pre-WW1 Austro-Hungarian empire. Here’s a step-by-step guide to experiencing a true Kafka process in the 21st century.
Kenya Paraffin Lamps and Candles (KPLC)
There are many positive aspects about Kenya. KPLC – Kenya Power and Lighting Company – is not one of them! I am writing this from my Sony Ericsson X10, whose battery is about to die….
M-pesa – Cutting-edge technology in Kenya
M-pesa – disrupting how people pay! Until recently, cutting-edge technology was not something most people would associate with Kenya. M-pesa has changed that! It’s already been three years since Safaricom, the leading mobile operator in…