Living in hell under demanding boss? What to do for a change

Are you in a thankless job thanks to your boss? You can do something about it. PHOTO | FILE 

By SERAPHINE RULIGIRWA-KAMARA

In Summary

• Free yourself from the bondage of working for an executive who sees no good in you.

This is a story about the worst boss — the most demanding of them. I see you thinking to decide which one. Don’t worry. I am referring to the boss for whom you can never do anything well enough. You frequently wonder how it is that you manage to stay on the payroll.

Kenya, Tanzania under pressure to harmonise port operations

Politics and policy

Container traffic at Mombasa port reached about one million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in 2014. PHOTO | FILE 

By ALLAN ODHIAMBO

In Summary

• A latest audit of operations at the Mombasa and Dar es Salaam ports revealed challenges to traders from Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda which affected the overall performance of trade in the region.
• The two ports are the main gateways to the East African region and also service markets in South Sudan and the Great Lakes region, handling key items including fuel, consumer goods and other imports as well as exports of tea and coffee from the region.

Kenya and Tanzania are under renewed pressure to harmonise their port procedures and charges to ease flow of shipment to landlocked states in East Africa.

Benefits of new railway begin to emerge in tales of local people at Emali, Kibwezi

Opinion and Analysis

Workers clear bushes at Tatu near Mariakani ahead of the construction of the new railway. Previously idle young men have found jobs on these sites. PHOTO | FILE 

By CAROL MUSYOKA

In Summary

• The benefits of the standard gauge railway are unfolding before our eyes in terms of job opportunities as well as growth of ancillary industries that make up the raw material supply chain for the project.

Tom decided to visit his sister who was living in France. He assumed that most French would speak English but found that many people spoke only their own language and this included the ticket inspector on the train.

Kenya pushes EA takeover deals to Sh86.2bn high

Burbidge Capital CEO Edward Burbidge (left) with Atlas Development & Support Services CEO Carl Esprey at the NSE last December. PHOTO | SALATON NJAU 

By CHARLES MWANIKI, cmwaniki@ke.nationmedia.com

In Summary

• Burbidge Capital data shows the number of M&A deals in 2014 stood at 48, with the value of the deals at Sh86.2 billion ($947 million). 
• In 2013, there were 31 such deals valued at Sh27 billion ($300.6 million).
• Kenya accounted for 33 of the 48 published deals last year, with a total disclosed value of Sh46.2 billion.

The value of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in East Africa went up by 215 per cent last year compared to 2013, with Kenya accounting for most of the deals.

Nairobi’s rich biggest gainers as inflation hits 19-month low on falling energy bills

Politics and policy

An attendant fuels a car at a Nyeri petrol station on January 16 where prices were Sh94.4 for petrol and Sh84.9 for diesel. PHOTO | JOSEPH KANYI 

By NEVILLE OTUKI, notuki@ke.nationmedia.com

In Summary

• Inflation for city’s upper income households stood at 2.05 per cent last month down from 3.19 per cent in December and 9.58 per cent last August, according to data released by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) on Friday.
• At 2.05 per cent, Nairobi’s wealthy have seen their inflation drop by 7.53 percentage points since August, compared with 3.17 percentage points and 2.66 for the middle and lower income segments respectively.

Inflation eased to a 19-month low on Nairobi’s rich families in January, making them the biggest beneficiaries of fuel and electricity whose prices have been falling in the last five months.

140 ex-yuMobile staff report Monday for work at Safaricom

Corporate News

A former Yu agent shop in Nairobi. Safaricom has integrated ex-yuMobile staff into its workforce. PHOTO | FILE 

By MUGAMBI MUTEGI, pmutegi@ke.nationmedia.com

In Summary

• Safaricom paid yuMobile Sh7.2 billion last year to acquire the Indian-owned telco’s assets, frequency spectrum, transmission towers and IT equipment as well as 150 employees.
• Airtel Kenya paid Sh4 billion to the global conglomerate Essar to acquire its customer base and use the brand name for at least two years.
• The bulk (70) of the staff will be absorbed into Safaricom’s technical team which focuses on both network and hardware equipment.

About 140 former yuMobile employees are set to start work at Safaricom on Monday, as part of the Sh11 billion joint buyout that also saw Airtel take over the exiting rival’s customers a fortnight ago.

How President Kenyatta brokered Sh500m Mumias bailout

Mumias Sugar factory. President Uhuru Kenyatta ordered Agriculture CS to prepare a roadmap after meeting 16 Western Kenya MPs. PHOTO | FILE 

By SIMON CIURI and VICTOR JUMA

In Summary

• Mumias Sugar is set to get Sh500 million two months after Mr Kenyatta met a group of Western Kenya politicians in behind-the-scenes negotiations. 
• Lugari MP Ayub Savula said the leaders took the extra-ordinary step to prevent the collapse of a company that is the centre-piece of Western Kenya’s economy.
• Mr Kenyatta was, however, clear that any relief from the government must come with a clear turnaround strategy to safeguard public funds.

The Treasury’s decision to bail out ailing Mumias Sugar Company on Friday was the result of President Uhuru Kenyatta’s intervention that sought to stave off a looming economic and political fallout from the impending collapse of Kenya’s biggest sugar miller.