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Hello and welcome to the Monday edition of the Evening Brief Newsletter where we are paying our rent in dollars.
Situational Awareness:? Extend a helping hand and bring relief to the lives of our mothers and girls who are still undergoing hardship in refugee camps after facing violence.
Ease their pain by donating money via MPESA or through bonga points.
As the shilling continues to nosedive against the dollar and economists unleash grim trajectories for the next 10 years, my colleague and Kenyans.co.ke senior writer Nyamasyo Kioko noticed a change in trend among Nairobi Landlords in select estates.
Landlords in affluent neighbourhoods of Westlands, Karen, Gigiri, Runda, Kileleshwa, and Muthaiga among others were increasingly pushing their real estate agents to collect rent in dollars, fearful that the shilling is continuously becoming volatile.
Shunguli Duncan of Rock Field Properties told Kenyans.co.ke that the number of landlords demanding that rent be paid in Dollars had increased exponentially in recent times.
“Some of the owners are not local, they are expatriates. They prefer dollars because of the instability of the Kenyan Shilling,” he explained.?
He explained that most foreign owners prefer payment in dollars in line with payment of loans they obtained in other countries for the real estate projects.
Another agent confirmed that whereas the trend was on an upscale, some of the landlords had just come to realize that charging in dollars was becoming ever more lucrative.
“I have local landlords making a lot of money out of the depreciating Kenyan Shilling. Last year, they used to receive after conversion Ksh139,000 for a house listed for USD1,000. Now they receive Ksh163,000 and that amount could go higher next year,” she explained.?
Our editors opine that the trend is likely to gather steam and spread to other businesses across the city, especially joints and malls beloved by tourists.
Towards the end of last year, our writer Maureen Njeri had also noticed that restaurants were increasingly adopting dollar charges .?
A popular joint in Gigiri, especially, was dragged online after it announced a slew of delivery services with dollars being the only mode of payment.
"We want a stable business, the shilling is not stable," the entrepreneur remarked.
Whereas it may be deemed that charging in dollars targets a high-brow clientele, the bottom line often influences the decision to pivot completely. For now, the shilling has hit Ksh162 against the dollar.
Shattering Dreams
Kenyans are increasingly getting turned off by the kind of jobs the state is procuring internationally and actively populating on its National Employment Authority Integrated Management System (NEAIMS) website.
A spot check by yours truly established that on Sunday and early Monday morning, the state listed north of 4,400 jobs on the portal attracting visits across the job-seeking spectrum.
90 per cent of the jobs, however, were low-cadre housemaid type, all in Saudi Arabia .
On Monday morning, Philinfo Global Limited announced that it was hiring 100 housemaids while Tasheel Travel Agency was in the market for 1,000 housemaids and 500 house drivers, all of whom are expected to work in the Middle East.
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Another agency, Talent Mine Agencies Limited, announced that it was seeking 1,000 housemaids, the same number advertised by Lipasama Global Agencies Limited.
On Sunday, TDM International Limited announced that it was hiring 850 housemaids.
"You also saw the jobs? I was fuming but now I am easy," joked a potential employee with a series of laughing emojis.
During his jet setting trips to secure the jobs, President William Ruto set his eyesight on Saudi Arabia among the top recruiting countries for the Kenyan workforce.
In his local rallies, the Head of State insisted that the state was aimed at unlocking all-rounded jobs, especially in white-collar settings across multinationals.
Towards the end of last year, he revealed that his agreements would unlock up to 2 million jobs in several countries including Canada, Russia, Germany and France among others.
Previously, a number of Kenyans contracted to serve as housemaids in Saudi Arabia complained of mistreatment forcing the two governments to build safety nets.
Interview With Super Metro CEO
On Monday morning, Kenyans woke up to sad news that an accident involving a Super Metro Coach Executive bus was involved in an accident at Ahero along the Kisumu-Nairobi Highway killing 17 people and injuring 27 others.
The accident was concerning since it involved a bus attached to a Sacco renowned for its good behavior and adherence to traffic regulations. In Nairobi, Super Metro Company Limited operates along Waiyaki Way and Thika Road and attracts long queues across its stages.
While sending condolences to the families of the deceased, Super Metro Company Limited CEO Nelson Nduki affirmed to me in a phone interview that his team was already on the ground dealing with the victims. The accident was a first for the Sacco.
Here is his full statement. It has been edited for clarity.
"We send our condolences to the families. It is very difficult because we have never experienced this (accident). We followed all the regulations as per the Traffic Act. We had two drivers who were seated in the front seats and passed on (from the crash).
"It is very unfortunate that this kind of accident can happen particularly to a brand that is related to our company. We are saddened and have sent our team (to the scene) because there are individuals who are hospitalised.
"We do not know what happened (leading to the crash). Unfortunately, the drivers and conductors who were seated at the front passed away. They were the only ones who could tell us exactly what happened. Until now, we have not been able to know the cause of the accident and we are waiting for the police investigating officers, maybe through their own investigations, to tell us exactly what transpired.
Here are five other stories we are following today;
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This newsletter was written by Derrick Kubasu and edited by Brian Muuo.
Washington Mito contributed to the content.
Graphics prepared by Adongo Kyalo and Ronnie Mbugua .