President Uhuru Kenyatta today told the youth they stand to benefit from the many employment, job creation and economic empowerment opportunities presented by the Big 4 Agenda projects. 
 
He told Kenyan youth that the transformative development blueprint presents a strong enabling platform to enable them secure a bright future and maximize their potential.
 
“The Big Four Agenda provides young persons with multiple avenues for self fulfilment, economic empowerment, dignified living and service to Kenya,” said the President when he addressed hundreds of youth at State House , Nairobi, during celebrations to honour the 2019 awardees of the President’s Award Kenya
 
A total of 1601 students drawn from various institutions across the country received their Gold Awards under the President’s Award Kenya Programme whose role is to nurture key values of team work, resilience, hard-work, determination, leadership, perseverance, community service, discipline, self-reliance and pragmatic thoughts for tangible solutions.
 
The winners were drawn from national institutions which included academies, secondary schools and universities (both private and public), borstal institutions, technical knstitutes and 
the National Youth Service.
 
The President said the Big-4 agenda programmes are structured to support the development of education, infrastructure, Information Communication Technology, the arts, culture and sports among other sectors, all aimed at benefiting the youth. 
 
“It is the most exciting and rewarding time to be a young person in our nation’s history,” the President told the over 2000 youths. 
 
He added: “You are fortunate to be living in an exciting time, full of opportunities that previous generations could not even have dreamed of."
 
The President challenged young people to avoid falling for the lures of modern life by wasting their youth and vigour in pursuits and actions that add no value to their lives.
 
“Use your time, energy and effort well; take advantage of the facilitative measures that the government has put in place, be dedicated and diligent, and you will prosper beyond your wildest dreams,” he said
 
President Kenya enumerated other opportunities that the government has recently tapped into and which are highly beneficial for the youth.
 
“The digital era and my government’s commitment to fostering the innovations and creativity of Young Kenyans is bound to open up new frontiers for you and your peers,” he told the youth.
 
The President said the decisive action to re-invigorate the education system through a new curriculum, government focus on digital learning and the development of ICT infrastructure and equipment, the ongoing connection of all public schools to the electricity grid and the seamless 100 per cent transition for all learners to secondary school marks a new era for Kenya's youth.
 
“These interventions are intended to ensure that our young persons are provided with the positive and enabling environment to excel inside and outside the classroom, to acquire the skills and know-how to navigate the modern world,to be self-reliant and innovative and to have a holistic learning experience," he said. 

The President urged the awardees to be the country’s brand ambassadors for courtesy, civic responsibility, community service and action, integrity, hard work and excellence.
 
Other speakers at the ceremony included sports CS Ambassador Amina Mohammed and the President’s Award Kenya Executive Director Nellie Munala.

Journalists from Kwale County have accused the County Health Executive Francis Gwama of intimidation and harassment.

The journalists accuse Gwama of denying them access to crucial information citing a case on Monday last week when the Health executive ordered a Kenya News Agency reporter out of his office after he asked about mortuary services.

The journalists have now written a protest letter to the Health Executive and copied it to the Governor Salim Mvurya, Senator Issa Boy, Media council of Kenya, the Kenya Union of Journalists, Kwale CSOs among other institutions.

In the letter signed by 20 journalists , they have mentioned five cases.

"We take great exception to your continued high- handedness, harassment and intimidation directed to journalists by you in your capacity as CEC health. This has made it increasingly difficult for journalists to access information in your department and hence denying the public the right to know what's going on in the health sector" reads part of the letter.

Following the successful release of the hit single Nitembezee featuring Kenya’s top recording and stage act Kidis the Jembe, self-proclaimed Kisumu president and most sort after award winning lyricist Gabiro Mtu Necessary is back with a new song featuring his producer Videz of Hybrid beats.

Multi-talented writer, IT professional, musician and performing artiste Gabiro Mtu Necessary, has released the visuals of his new song International Local that has been on rapid social media promotional buzz for over two weeks.  

Written and performed by Gabiro Mtu Necessary, featuring Videz the video was directed by Crizo Mzeyah who is the brain behind all his previous music and lyric videos something that shows the close bond between the two over the years.

The two artists; Gabiro and Videz have a unique sense of identity that makes them stand out in a field characterized by cut throat competition.

The diversity in the different acts has brought a spiced flavor that Kenyan music lovers and listeners all over the world can identify with.

However, behind all that glamour, fame and fortune is a lot of hard work that these artists put.

Some artists toil and sweat trying to come up with ‘Good Music’ that never makes it to the air waves.

 Breaking through in the industry, having a voice and a platform to showcase your art is no mean achievement.

“International Local is one of those songs that tries to enlighten us that your favorite international artist was also once a local artist or maybe they still are local but on a much elevated platform that makes all of us see them in that context”, says Gabiro

Videz on the other hand believes that local music is the exact replica of what many of us believe as international music but when rounded up to the simplest definition it all comes back to what we all refer to as ‘good music’ even though their can never be good or bad music considering every audience has their own different taste of music.

Seeing the two artists define and combine their level of a creativity, skills and ability on one track is one thing many of us would have wanted to happen soon considering Videz produced the hit single Nitembezee by Gabiro which saw him elevate to a mainstream artist.

The track is an authentic Kenyan sound fused with a little bit of Caribbean sound to give it the much hyped feeling and vibe we can all expect in a club banger.

Speaking on the new release, Gabiro said, “I owe a lot to my fans and everyone who puts my work out there in one way or another and when I was almost giving up on music you all gave me a thousand reasons not to stop doing this and so International Local is just one but a few of the reasons you should also not stop supporting and showing unconditional love towards my me as a brand and as a person”

“This song is the definition of the standard of quality I promised to deliver – I am sure they will definitely enjoy this one!”

Good news for Kenyan music fans as today Boomplay announce a major deal, set to enrich music lovers on the App with quality music from a host of global stars.

Kenyans can now access all the official music of leading global acts like Wale, Cold Play, Wiz Khalifa, Trey Songz, Sia, Missy Elliot, Kranium, Notorius B.I.G, Janelle Monae , Cardi B, Jason Derulo, Bruno Mars and Gucci Mane.

This follows Boomplay having signed a direct licensing agreement with Warner Music to bring the record company’s diverse global roster of music to Kenya and Africa as a whole.

The terms of the partnership allow Boomplay to distribute Warner Music’s extensive catalogue of more than one million songs to its community of listeners in ten countries; Kenya, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.

With this partnership, Kenyans can now discover and enjoy music from their favorite global stars among them.

The deal will provide Warner Music’s artists with direct access and exposure to Boomplay’s millions of users in the region, while bringing Boomplay, the largest music streaming and download service in Africa, one step closer to its goal of bringing all music from around the world to Africa.

Joe He, CEO of Boomplay, says: “Major deals with internationally recognized partners such as Warner Music continue to push us closer to our aim of building the largest and the most reliable online music distribution platform in Africa”. 

He adds “We want every music lover in the region to be able to access any song or video, anytime and wherever they are.  We are looking forward to a successful partnership and business continuation with WMG in what are truly exciting times for the African Music Industry.”

Speaking on the deal, Martha Huro, Boomplay‘s General Manager in Kenya says: ‘’We are extremely excited about this new partnership and the possibilities it will inevitably offer. We continue to work towards bringing the most enhanced and extensive music catalogue to the Boomplay Users in Kenya and beyond.’’

Alfonso Perez Soto, EVP, Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, Warner Music, adds: “The streaming service already has tremendous reach across the continent, yet they continue to expand exponentially.  It’s an opportunity that can’t be missed for our artists to make a whole new legion of fans.”

Adding, “I’d like to thank Warner Music’s Charlie White, Marc Latilla and Reni Adadevoh for their unstinting support in helping pull this deal together and get it over the line.”

In the past year, Boomplay has been on the crest of a wave, announcing landmark deals with global major labels, acquiring millions of new users monthly and releasing an iOS version in December 2018.

With major labels coming on board, Boomplay is now in a strong position to further improve its service offerings and defend its leading position in Africa. Boomplay, which has more than 42 million users as of February 2019, boasts an expansive catalogue consisting of five million songs and thousands of videos from local and international acts.

Fast rising Coast artist Mswazi Masauti has team up with rapper Khaligraph Jones in his new release, 'Kiboko' remix.

The video was directed by Enos Olik.

First Lady Margaret Kenyatta has said social protection is a fundamental human right and a challenge with a bearing on not only human health but also on the overall human development.

While calling on all stakeholders to play an active role in the establishment of sustainable national social protection programmes, the Kenyan First Lady said she was glad that gender mainstreaming is now a dominant subject in many national social protection systems globally. 

The Kenyan First Lady challenged global leaders to reflect on how they can use their leadership influence to ensure the issue of social protection is responsive to the most vulnerable groups in their societies. 

First Lady Margaret Kenyatta recounted her experience in advocacy, saying her actions resulted in the refocusing of national attention towards ignored areas of the health sector especially the primary causes of maternal and child mortality.

“When I stepped into the role of being First Lady, it allowed me to start thinking about how this position could make a difference and change the course of our country’s future in the health arena,” said the First Lady.

The First Lady spoke when she addressed over 500 delegates during the ongoing 63rd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women, which is taking place at the United Nations Headquarters in New York city. 

The theme of the side event was “ The Power of Women’s Agency in Transforming Social Norma for Better Health Outcomes and Well Being.”

She said her simple message that "No woman should die giving life’, resonated well with the masses thereby creating awareness on the health challenges that had long been an impediment to social protection especially lack of access to quality health care, information and education for women, children and vulnerable societies.

“The principle ‘idea’ of Beyond Zero is to spur a ‘movement’ across the country about an issue that weighs heavily on the minds of ordinary Kenyans, ordinary families,” said First Lady Margaret Kenyatta. 

The Kenyan First Lady pointed out that at the time of the launch of Beyond Zero Initiative in 2014, Kenya was considered one of the most dangerous places for a woman to give birth due to the high maternal and neonatal mortality rates.

She also said at that time, chances of survival for an HIV patient was very low and yet the fatalities could have been prevented using proven, affordable and sustainable interventions.

“At that time, the total maternal deaths were 6,300 per year and 13,000 new HIV infections occurred among children annually and the number of pregnant women attended by skilled health workers during delivery was at 44%,” the First Lady said. 

She said, it is the above factors that created a sense of urgency within her requiring immediate action. 

“An advocacy initiative such as Beyond Zero was timely in creating momentum, mobilise leadership and raise commitment towards achieving results in HIV, maternal newborn and child health,” she pointed out.

The First Lady said the Beyond Zero initiative is anchored in an ideology that exemplifies complementarity to existing global and national health sector plans, policies, and services which accelerates inspired action by all stakeholders to provide concrete solutions.

She noted that through Beyond Zero, the country has over the past five years made great strides in reducing maternal and child mortality.

“Through our collective efforts, we have contributed to prevention of thousands of mothers and babies dying from lack of access to healthcare, ”said the First Lady. 

Adding, ”We have contributed to the widespread awareness around the health challenges facing women, children and vulnerable communities.” 

The First Lady said at the national level, Beyond Zero has instituted significant progress in Kenya’s healthcare system by increased safe deliveries at health facilities to over 60%, increased breastfeeding rates to more than 60%, increased immunization rates to over 63% and reduction of mother to child transmission of HIV to 11%.

The initiative has also contributed to increased resource allocations to health and expanded access to specialized care at national and sub-national levels.  

“For example, under the Government’s universal health care coverage, dialysis and chemotherapy are now included under the National Health Insurance Scheme,” said the First Lady.

Princess Mabel Van Oranje of Denmark who spoke through a video link commended the Kenyan First Lady for her initiative saying it has greatly helped women, children and the most vulnerable groups in society access quality public health services. 

The Dutch Princess, a great champion of global partnership to end child marriages under the movement  ‘Girls not Brides’, said she will continue collaborating with First Lady Margaret Kenyatta to ensure women and girls are empowered to achieve their goals.

Ford Foundation Vice President for International Programmes Martin Abregu said the foundation values partnerships that are aimed offering long lasting solutions to challenges facing vulnerable members of society.

In attendance were the Cabinet Secretary for Public Service, Youth and Gender Affairs, Prof. Margaret Kobia, Chief Administrative Secretary in the Ministry Rachel Shebesh and spouse to the former Prime Minister Ida Odinga.

Akothee has initiated a campaign aimed at helping Kenyans starving in Turkana due to hunger.

The campaign dubbed 'Lets feed the straving in Turkana' is aimed at feeding the affected Kenyans through collecting funds from well wishers via a special pay bill number: 891300.

Through her popular and influential social media pages, Akothee has so far managed to raise over kshs 100,000 in a span of eight hours.

Other artists who have also raised their concern over the humanitarian crisis is rapper King Kaka who has blamed politicians for the crisis.

"Mr Politician how do you sleep at night, when funds meant for water points and food are misused. When billions are stolen and we can't feed our fellow Kenyans . Macho magumu sana. How?. As we wait for the next scandal. Shame on you" posted King Kaka.

It is reported that at least 3.4 million Kenyans are facing starvation, the most at risk counties being Isiolo, Kilifi, Turkana, Wajir and Tana River.

Mövenpick Hotel & Residences Nairobi is pleased to confirm Safehotels certification as a new safety and security initiative for 2019. 

The certification, based on the Global Hotel Security Standard®, is recognized by hotel and travel associations, corporate accounts and organisations such as the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) around the world.

The criteria for the certification achieved by the hotel consists of more than 230 individual standard components relating to security, emergency management, fire safety, health and occupational safety.

“We are delighted to announce our hotel has been certified by Safe hotels,” said Andreas Flückiger, General Manager, Mövenpick Hotel & Residences Nairobi.

He added “The safety and security of our guests is always our top priority and we are always looking for new initiatives to further develop our existing standards for both guests and employees”

Maintaining Safehotels certification is an ongoing process and the hotel will be recertified through an onsite visit and independent assessment by Safe hotels every year.

“Our certification aims to further enhance the existing levels of hotels safety and security, through the experience, expertise and fresh approach Safe hotels provides for a hotel” said Andy Williams, VP Quality Assurance Safehotels.

Adding “Staying at a Safehotels certified hotel is valued by corporate and leisure travellers around the world and we are delighted to celebrate with Mövenpick Hotel & Residences Nairobi in achieving this certification award”.

The family of Likoni Mp Mishi Mboko is mourning the death of their son and brother Dr Hamisi Ali Juma.

According to reports Hamisi who  was among the 50 Kenyan doctors sent to Cuba to pursue further studies at the University of Medical Sciences in Havana, to specialize in Family Medicine died yesterday (Sunday) with reports suggesting that he might have committed suicide over poor living conditions.

The late DR Hamisi Ali Juma

A statement from the Cabinet Secretary Ministry of health Sicily Kariuki and Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho however notes the circumstances resulting in the death are not yet clear and investigations by the Cuban authorities are still underway to establish the cause.

According to the statement plans are already underway to bring the body back home.

The Orange Democratic Party took to twitter to send their condolences to the family.

“Condolences to the family of Likoni MP and deputy director of elections Hon @mbokomishi following the death of her brother Dr Ali Hamso in Cuba where he had gone to pursue Masters Degree in Medicine. We pray for God's fortitude in the family during this sad moment.”  tweeted ODM.

Addressing members of the press in Mombasa, Monday morning Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentist Union Secretary General Abidal Mwachi called on the Government to recall all the remaining countries to the country stating the union had earlier raised the red flag over the poor living conditions in the country.

Tanzanian singer Aslay has just dropped a new music titled 'Nyang'anyang'a'.

Watch its video below