Month: March 2024

Over 400 widows at Majengo estate in Narok town have a reason to smile after a peace organization gave them food stuff as an Easter holiday gift.

The food was given by Narok County Peace Ambassador Dr. Joshua Kaputa, who called on all Christians to share food and clothing to the needy and vulnerable families during this Easter holiday.

‘It is our time to make a smile on someone’s face. I ask my fellow brethren to support the needy people in our society as we commemorate the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ,’ he said.

He reiterated that he will continue supporting the needy in the society and fighting for their needs so that they too can feel appreciated and contribute meaningfully to the development of the county.

‘I know widows and orphans face a lot of challenges in life. We decided to celebrate with them so that they too can feel appreciated. I want to assure them that I will always stand with them to defend their rights,’ he said.

Mary Mutheu, one of the beneficiaries said many familie
s were spending the night on an empty stomach because they cannot afford to buy food.

She said the foodstuff given will last for at least one week calling on other well-wishers to volunteer to support the vulnerable and needy in the society.

Esther Pachenya, another beneficiary, thanked the peace organization for remembering the less fortunate people in the society and prayed that God would continue increasing their gallery.

‘This is unusual love; we did not expect such great support during this Easter holiday. Thank you to the organizing committee,’ she said.

The foods given include maize floor, beans, sugar, cooking oil, rice and wheat flour.

Easter holiday is celebrated by Christians to commemorate the crucification, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Source: Kenya News Agency

A shootout between National Police Service (NPS) Officers from Loima and suspected bandits at Kangalita in Kalemnyang left three of the suspects dead.

According to the national police service statement to the press, one of the suspects, Simon Egielan Lopongorei, 37, a notorious bandit and gang leader had three pending court cases of robbery with violence, gang-rape and threatening to kill.

Lopongorei has been under investigation for a series of unresolved violent crimes, including highway robberies stock-theft and possession of illicit firearms for hire within Loima Sub-County.

The second suspect, Lokucha Ngeruk a.k.a sharpshooter, 39, a close associate and aide to Egielan. has been on the run after the killing of a police officer at Kangalita 3yrs ago.

He is also accused of laying an ambush on Lorugum OCS on the 28/12/2023 occassioning him actual bodily harm.

The third suspect is Tiya Logumo aged, 21 who is an accomplice to the two.

Recovered from the scene was an AK 47 Rifle with a magazine containing
3 rounds of ammunitions together with spent cartridges.

Their bodies were moved to Lodwar County Referral Hospital pending post mortem examination.

‘The National Police Service would like to thank members of public for their continued cooperation in the ongoing Government efforts to restore peace and normalcy in the ‘Dangerous and Disturbed Zones’ within the North Rift Region,’ said NPS.

Source: Kenya News Agency

The Ministry of cooperatives has asked coffee cooperative societies to list and verify their debts so as to help the government factor in funds to waive the owed arrears.

The Ministry’s cabinet secretary, Simon Chelugui, noted that listing the debts will give the government the right information on the amount needed to clear the debts.

Speaking in Murang’a on Friday, Chelugui said the government is committed to revitalize the coffee sector noting one way of doing so is to waive debts owed by farmers through their cooperative societies.

He explained that after getting the right figure of the total debts, they will seek approval in the national assembly to have the money factored in the budget to clear the debts.

‘In the dairy sector, debts were waived, currently debts in the sugar industry are being worked on and now the government is committed to clear the debts owed by coffee farmers,’ he said,

‘I appeal to county governments where coffee is grown to help in listing and verifying the debts so as to hast
en the process,’ he added.

Chelugui stressed on the need to revive the coffee industry saying by doing so farmers’ income will grow as well as boost the country’s economic growth.

‘Coffee is the second most traded commodity in the world after oil. The cash crop earns more than 625 billion US dollars annually but unfortunately what goes to farmers is less than 25 percent.’ he said,

‘As the government, we are working to remove the 26 intermediaries and brokers who are between the producers and consumers of coffee,’ added the CS.

The intermediaries, he said have seen loss of coffee value by 90 percent leaving farmers to earn peanuts.

‘In the near future, we want to remove all brokers and close the gap between the producer and consumer. This will see farmers’ earnings increase by a huge margin,’ he added.

Chelugui appealed to county governments in the coffee growing zones to assist farmers with seedlings of the high yield producing coffee varieties so as to increase coffee production.

‘Our target is to inc
rease coffee production to more than 200,000 metric tonnes annually. Currently the production is about 100,000 metric tonnes and high production can be attained by availing extension services to farmers. This will be done by county administrations,’ he said.

The CS continued, ‘the farmers also need high quality farm inputs and finances to increase production and the government has set aside Sh. 8 billion cherry advance fund which can easily be accessed by farmers to increase production.’

On avocado farming, the CS lauded Murang’a county for leading in production of avocado meant for export.

He highlighted among the 130,000 metric tonnes of avocado produced in the country, 100,000 metric tonnes are exported to overseas markets.

‘Last year, Murang’a county produced 21,000 metric tonnes of avocado which were exported.’ He said noting that the fruit is becoming the county’s major foreign exchange earner and as the government they are committed to support avocado production not only in Murang’a but in other co
unties.

‘With support from farmers to produce quality fruits and avoid post-harvest losses, farmers’ income will go up and the country will become a leading exporter of avocado,’ he added.

Source: Kenya News Agency

Addis Ababa: More than 74,000 second-generation of Ethiopian Diaspora have visited their ancestral homeland in the first phase alone, according to the Ethiopian Diaspora Service.

It is worth recalling that Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed initiated this homecoming program to reconnect the Second-generation Ethiopian Diaspora with their origin and inspire them in order to contribute to the development of the country.

Ethiopian Diaspora Service Community Development Acting Director, Nebyu Solomon told ENA that the second generation of Ethiopian Diaspora has been invited to come in three-rounds from 30th December 2023 to the end of September 2024.

According to the acting director, the first-phase homecoming under the motto “Connect to Your Culture” was carried out from 30th December to 8th February 2024.

In the first-round more than 74,000 second-generation Ethiopian Diaspora have come to their homeland, adding that it is a satisfactory turn out and was imperative to offer informative events about Ethiopian history
as well as culture.

Nebyu highlighted that the first-round homecoming program was successful, stating, second-generation Diaspora members have demonstrated their enthusiasm, and many expressed satisfaction with their experience.

He further indicated that those Diaspora members have pledged to play a role in Ethiopia’s development endeavors.

The second-generation Ethiopian Diaspora members have also visited various tourism cities of the country and the ongoing development projects in the country, he indicated.

And the second-round homecoming under the motto ‘Connect to Your History’ has been already launched and will last till 8th May 2024, Nebyu stated.

In this phase, opportunities will be facilitated to the Diaspora members in order to visit heritage sites including the newly built Adwa Victory Memorial museum.

Nebyu underscored that the visit will help them to properly realize Ethiopia’s role in Pan-Africanism, stating ‘we hope to inspire them to carry this legacy forward.’

Source: Ethiopian News Ag
ency

Addis Ababa: Inhabitants of various cities in Oromia region have today participated in a road running to reaffirm their support for the successful completion of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

A five-kilometer road race has come at a time when the 13th year laying of the foundation of the renaissance dam will be commemorated at the end of this month under the theme: ‘Together We Made It Possible.’

The construction of Grand Renaissance Dam has reached 95 percent, the Office of National Coordination for the Construction of the Dam disclosed.

The dam with its 13th year laying of the foundation is being celebrated in various events including road race, panel discussion, fundraising campaigns and other activities.

Today, thousands of residents in five towns of Oromia region have participated in a road running to display their support for the dam, it was learned.

Speaking to ENA, the participants of the race said they have also contributed a lot in terms of financial support through bond purchases and gifts since the beginning of the dam construction.

The construction of the GERD which commenced in 2011 is now near completion, it was indicated.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

The National Research Fund (NRF) in collaboration with the British Council has launched the Kenya National Research Repository (NRR) that will serve as a central open access digital hub for the country’s rich research outputs.

The central platform themed ‘Digital Research Outputs, Empowering Innovations: Accelerating a Sustainable Research Ecosystem’ will enable people to access research information produced in Kenya in the thematic areas of Land, water and energy.

Speaking during the launch, the Principal Secretary, State Department for Higher Education and Research Dr. Beatrice Inyangala said the National Research Repository marks a significant step towards a training of what has been set out in the journey towards a knowledge best society in the realization of the national development goal.

She said that NRR embraces the potential of the transparency power of an open space repository and publishing movement that would make research available while engaging in a robust conversation with the development p
artner in a mechanism that enables awareness creation on the National Research Repository.

Inyangala added that NRR will also distract the capacity of such a repository to facilitate new and vast leadership, visibility and impact for the beneficiaries of NRF partners of such a project as well as research sponsored by the agencies.

‘I wish to reiterate that the government is keen in adopting the policy of an open and access policy fund using public funds,’ she said, and added that the commitment is rooted in the belief that public funded research should be accessible to all in order to maximize its impact by fueling innovation.

The PS reiterated the government’s determination to align with international agreement and policies that promote the digitalization of knowledge.

She further noted that the open and access movement is supported by a free international market which include the Berlin declaration on open access to knowledge in the sciences and humanities and UNESCO recommendation on object Science amo
ng others.

The PS while acknowledging all partners who have walked the journey with NRF by turning a dream of a National Database into a tangible reality said the platform will revolutionize the way people discriminate against research findings.

‘An expanded hope of research as a country will provide an opportunity of advancing research to achieve the National development goal as articulated in the Bottom up Economic Transformation Agenda which include healthcare, agricultural transformation, affordable housing and creative economy,’ said the PS.

She noted that the repository will empower stakeholders across all sectors with the knowledge needed to drive the data leaving a sustainable economic development and social transformation besides enhancing the quality for health, education and research.

Inyangala who urged NRF to remain committed to the long-term success and sustainability of the repository, also called on stakeholders to support the repository to realize its noble, since collaboration will help
in ensuring that the repository becomes a cornerstone in a pursuit of a knowledge driven economy.

‘The government will allocate additional funds for its operation as well as other research activities to enable NRF to recruit requisite human personnel to coordinate the processes,’ she assured.

Inyangala reaffirmed the ministry’s commitment in providing support to NRF in the journey, in order to harness the power and access to unlock the potential of the nation’s research and innovation.

In her remark, the Head of Education, British Council Monica Blagescu said British Council is committed to build and improve international partnerships for research collaboration, knowledge exchange and scientific outreach, increasing trust and building long-term relationship between researcher communities, policymakers and public audience since they focus on excellence, inclusivity and trust in research.

‘In a context where much of the research in Kenya remains in analogue form, a digital open access platform can help brea
k barrier to international collaboration by participating in international research projects and initiatives,’ she stated.

She added that Kenyan institutions and researchers can leverage their expertise and resources to contribute to global knowledge and to address shared challenges.

Blagescu said that digitalizing knowledge and making it readily available will make the repository to improve its accessibility and help accelerate progress to the young entrepreneurs who will be inspired by research in accessing evidence to help them identify market opportunity and generate new ideas for new ventures that solve problems.

‘Policy makers who will easily access and use evidence-based research will make informed decision and develop effective policies to address societal challenges,’ she added.

Chairman National Research Fund Prof. Ratemo Michieka said NRF is looking forward to getting information that can be kept private, of which it will choose what must be protected and what will be going out.

‘The resource
for repository will serve as a dynamic platform for designation of knowledge and preservation of output for Kenya that can be shared,’ he stated.

Prof. Michieka urged stakeholders to take note on Sustainable Development Goals Number 17 to enable them be informed of what must be shared and what must be protected, adding that Universities must make a difference by ensuring what they select is important to the Nation.

Source: Kenya News Agency