Ommy Dallah
Femi One Releases 'Donjo', First Major Project For 2021
Femi One has just released the video for her single, Donjo.
The track which was produced by Ricco Beatz is the perfect mix of hip hop and dancehall while maintaining Femi One’s signature sound.
The song displays her lyrical prowess and playful wordplay which her fans have come to love.
Donjo is sheng for sweet or enjoyable and in the song, Femi One shares her version of a good and enjoyable party.
The visually colourful yet expressive video was directed by Trey Juelz. It is the picture-perfect video with visuals showcasing Femi One’s fun side with dope dancing.
“Being One most successful artist in East Africa, Femi One has grown and natured her sound and voice over the years across the region. We are happy and confident that is one of the success stories from Kenya and Africa ” said Dennis Njenga head of talent management at Kaka empire
On her part Femi One noted “We took all the time learning and perfecting my art and sound over the years, I believe we have established the brand Femi One as a diverse and versatile artist ".
Adding "I have more in-store with a major announcement coming out soon from my management. Enjoy DONJO and thank you for the continued support ”.
WATCH DONJO ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTEsGnaAJ1A
Top German Model Anne Sophie Offers To Pay Full Scholarship For Kenyan Students
A top German model, Anne Sophie has announced that she will be paying full scholarship for two students from Children’s Garden Home and School in Nairobi.
Speaking during a visit to the school, Sophie challenged local celebrities to also reach out to the less fortunate children through education sponsorship, especially those from poor backgrounds.
Sophie who has been in the industry for more than 10 years and modeled for some of the top international brands like Vogue, Celine and Vivienne Westwood, promised to mobilise her European colleagues in the industry to support needy children in the country.
“We should use our positions in the society to help the less fortunate children,” she added.
She further expressed her love for Kenya and said she would be visiting often to give back to the society.
The two students who will benefit from the scholarship Aisha Mwajuma and Esther Njoki were brought up in Children’s Garden Home and School and are waiting to be admitted in college.
On his part the director of Children’s Garden Home and School, Moses Ndun’gu welcomed the gesture saying it would go a long way in helping underprivileged children in the society.
According to him, most of the children are from the slums of Kibera, Kawangware and Kangemi.
Kenyan Indie Soul Artist Muthaka Joins A.I Records
A.I Records (K) Ltd/ Universal Music Group Kenya, is glad to announce the signing of contemporary indie-soul singer and song writer Christine Muthaka, stage name ‘Muthaka’.
“We are extremely excited to start this new journey with this amazing young talent and help her achieve greater heights in her career. She has everything it takes to put Kenya out there in a genre that most artists wouldn’t dare touch.” John Andrews quotes.
The mellow voiced, 22-year-old songwriter officially started her career through live performances, usually in the company of a live band.
It was in one of these Live Performances, that her undeniable angelic voice caught the ear of the label, and a new musical journey was born of Muthaka and the label.
Asked about her influences Muthaka says, “I call my music Contemporary Indie Soul- and the indie feel I got from listening to a lot of country music growing up the likes of Kenny Rogers, Dolly Parton and John Denver. Then the more contemporary styles I would say I was influenced by Mumford and Sons, and Vance Joy.
Vocally though I grew up studying vocalist super houses like Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Celine Dion, Abba and Leona Lewis. Then as I got more involved in my own music I shifted to the likes of H.E.R, Tori Kelly, Jazmine Sullivan and Adele.
Asked about her genre of music, Muthaka was quick to voice out that music is that place you should get lost in when you need an out. “I want my music to be that silent friend any person regardless of gender, age, race can just find solace in, that’s why I love indie soul kind of music” she sums it up.
John Andrews, the General Manager A.I Records & Universal Music Group Kenya said, “Soul music is like a sweet symphony to the heart, and to me that is what music should be. The India Arie’s, Gladys Knight’s, Aretha Franklin’s have defined to us what music should be. And that is why I’m excited to start this chapter of our label with Muthaka.”
Muthaka will release her debut single “Why Don’t You Love Me” on the 29th of January 2021, which is also off her debut album, due to be released later in the year. The song is drawn from a real-life experience and looking back, Muthaka smiles about the whole experience. The lyrics might remind us of some situation-ships we have all found ourselves in.
Freshley Mwamburi Remixes His Evergreen Hit 'Stella Wangu'
Rhumba Icon Freshly Mwamburi has kicked off the new year with a surprise project - the visuals to the remix of his ever fresh hit song Stella Wangu.
In 1992, Freshly Mwamburi released Stella Wangu, a timeless classic hit that is forever etched in the hearts of Kenyans.
The record is a love/hate story avidly put together – and every year on 17th, May, Kenyans reminisce about this great classic.
The world class music video was shot at Golden Palm Hotel - Kenol and other parts of Kenya to showcase the beautiful sceneries of our country Kenya.
The video was directed and shot by Eric Ahoy better known as Mtu Cinema in conjunction with DJ Qariz.
The music video has been choreographed by the renowned Kenyan dancer and choreographer Arthur Chiluba.
Stella Wangu’s remix video has come to life courtesy of Engineer Njau Njoka, who oversaw the audition process to get the right cast and also funded the project with the aim of re- introducing Mwamburi into the music scenes, empowering him to continue with his music career.
Watch The Video Here: https://youtu.be/
About Mwamburi
Mwamburi Mwakachola popularly known as Freshly Mwamburi (Kazi Ngoma) was born on 7th November 1958. Born and raised on the slopes of Kilimanjaro in Wundanyi - Taita, he came into the music scene in 1980 and has had a successful music career spanning over 40 years. He cites Franklin Boukaka as one of his musical influences.
The hit song Stella Wangu thrust him into national limelight and enabled him to extensively travel and perform across Kenya, Uganda & Tanzania in the 90's.
Kenyan Midfielder Henry Ochieng Joins Watford Fc
Kenyan Under-23 international midfielder Henry Ochieng has joined Watford football club.
Ochieng has joined the English Championship side until the end of the season and will play for the club’s academy.
"We are pleased to confirm the signing of Kenya U23 international @HenryOchieng_, who joins our academy" reads a tweet from Watford Fc.
On his part Ochieng expressed his joy for joining the club.
"Delighted to have signed for @WatfordFC looking forward to the new journey ahead" posted Ochieng.
The Kenyan footballer made his senior debut in 2016 for Leyton Orient after spending time at academies at the same club and in West Ham. He has also played for Welwyn Garden City Fc, Wingate and Finchley F.C ( England) , Braintree Town F.C. (England) ,and Cork City FC (Ireland).
Jiffy Pictures Unveils The Voice Behind Maria Theme Song
Jiffy pictures, the production company behind the award winning Tv series Maria has finally unveiled the voice behind the drama's theme song.
In a post shared on instagram, Jiffy pictures who are also the producers of several popular Tv dramas like Moyo, Kovu, Mizani, Huba, Kaidi unveiled Tanzanian artist Akili the Bran as the voice behind the theme song.
Maria won two awards at the 2020 Kalasha Awards with lead actress, aka Yasmin Said Maria Best Leading Actress in the Television Drama category.
Akili The Brain is the artist behind the song 'Regina' which was very popular back in 2006.
Citizen Tv news anchor Rashid Abdallah and his wife, fellow anchor Lulu Hassan co-own Jiffy pictures.
Popular Mugithi Artist Mighty Salim Is Dead
The Grim Reaper has robbed Kenya one of its greatest Mugithi acts, Timothy Njuguna aka Mighty Salim.
The renowned artist who was also known for his 'box' haircut passed away on Sunday, just a day after hosting his late brother's Salim Junior's fifth memorial.
According to the family, he succumbed to diabetes. He was diagnosed with diabetes in 2003.
His late brother Salim Junior succumbed to a prolonged illness at Nakuru Memorial Hospital.
"RIP Legend. A good heart has stopped beating, a good soul ascended to heaven. You will stay in history of múgithi forever. Thank you for all the pleasure you gave us.To the Salim's Family, May our Lord brings you and your family the much-needed peace during this sad time. RIP Mighty Salim" posted Samidoh
Wireless Earbuds To Set The Trend In Tech In 2021
The tech sector this year, according to many tech gurus, is set to be defined by Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT) with a great range of products tailored towards gadgets in the telecommunications sector; mobile phones.
Many Kenyan millennials seem to already be setting the pace by embracing wireless over the use of the normal earphones commonly known as earbuds.
According to those using wireless earbuds, they are convenient since they are light, stylish and trendsetting.
One tech giant that purposes to be a tech-trendsetter brand through its “mobile phone + AIoT” dual-drive strategy to create a trendy lifestyle for the younger generation, is realme.
In October 2021, the smartphone maker introduced realme Buds Q and the realme Buds Air Neo in the Kenyan market.
The realme Buds Q feature a 10mm dynamic bass boost driver, 119ms super-low latency gaming mode, 20-hour long battery life, and IPX4 water and sweat resistance allowing one to comfortably work out or do any kind of sporting activities without getting them damaged while the realme Buds Air Neo comes with an instant Auto Connection, a 13mm Dynamic Bass Boost Driver, a Bluetooth 5.0 connection, you can play hundreds of songs in your Playlist for up to 17 Hours
realme’s strategy to pair their devices the wireless earbuds provide customers with a tech trendy and advanced experience.
The smartphones such as the realme 7i, from the number series and realme C12, realme C15 from the C series feature massive batteries that keep charge hence supporting gaming and music and other entertainment components that require the convenient pairing.
This coupled with quick charge and super power-saving mode and ultra-smooth display.
A great phone is one with a large storage capacity, long-lasting battery, appealing to the eye, and goes hand in hand with the current trends.
That is why, in four months the company launched various smartphones on the Kenyan market including realme C3, realme C11, realme C15, realme C12, realme 6, and realme 7i all these with AIot products including the realme Buds Q realme Buds Air Neo and the realme band.
Being the first brand in the world to hit 50 million shipments with the majority of the units being shipped during the third quarter of 2020, realme has cut itself a niche by heavily investing in such features as the battery on their phones.
These batteries can last up to 56 days when the gadget is on standby mode.
For the year, the brand has already announced plans to be part of the larger market share in Kenya. Stay tuned for more this year.
For the month of January, realme extended its festive season offer which will see very purchase of the realme 7i come with free realme Buds Q while the realme 6 will come with a free realme band and the realme C15 will come with a customized pillow all available on all online and offline shops
Visit the realme website https://www.realme.com/mea-en/ for more great features or follow @realmkenya on Instagram and @realme on facebook.
About realme
realme is a technology brand officially established on May 4, 2018, by Sky Li. realme aspires to provide products with a comprehensive superior experience for the young, and realme is committed to being a trendsetting technology brand.
It brings consumers products with trendsetting technologies, features and trendsetting experiences that are first applied in the price segment. realme’s global users have reached 50 million and its sales volume of AIoT audio products broke the record of 1 million in 2020.
According to the statistics of Counterpoint global smartphone shipments in Q1 of 2020, the emerging smartphone brand realme still ranks 7th with a year-over-year growth rate of 157% which ranks the first in the world as well. As the world's fastest-growing smartphone brand, realme stands firmly among the mainstream smartphone brands.
Effects Of Covid-19 On Learning In Kenya
On March 15, 2020, the Kenyan government abruptly closed all schools nationwide in response to COVID-19, disrupting nearly 17 million learners countrywide.
The closure of institutions not only affected learners and teachers but it also brought forth numerous economic and social issues, including interrupted and loss of learning, homelessness, increase in teenage pregnancies, sexual exploitation among others.
Christine* has to keep up with his emotional abusive tuktuk driver “husband” just at the age of 17 years old.
She was sent to her husband’s home by her parents after they discovered she was pregnant.
The father of the baby wanted the pregnancy be aborted, but Christine could not bring herself to “killing”
Christine who is now four months pregnant met the husband after she boarded his tuktuk.
“We were just friends and he would offer me free rides. I accepted them because I could save money meant for transportation and instead use it in buying other personal items,” said Christine.
And with the schools closed and with parents to supervise, she found herself with a lot of free time, which gave her an opportunity to engage in sexual activities, something that she really regrets.
Without the knowledge of safe sex or contraceptives she found herself pregnant.
When the parents discovered, they chased her away and was forced to seek refuge at the driver’s house.
“I am like a second wife because his wife leaves at their rural home. Ever since I came to his house, it has become a shouting field and he sometimes gets violent, “she said.
Christine wished that her family could forgive and accept her back home.
Mary, a class five pupil at one of the primary school in Mombasa was forced to marry a class five boy who had impregnated her.
“I met Karisa and we became friends but within short period, I got pregnant ,”she revealed.
Mary said her parents were angry after she informed them of her situation.
She added “My dad was mad and took me to Karisa’s house and left me there. He said he will come back for me once I give birth,”
However, months later, she still has to put up with her a teenage husband as her father is yet to pick her up.
To make matters worse, her family moved back to their rural home.
Mary has to spend most of days with her three months child and her mother-in-law since the husband is always away most of the time.
Statistics
According to statistics at the Kenya health information system, between January and May 2020, Kenya recorded 151,433 cases of teenage pregnancies.
The girls were between the aged of 10-19 years old.
Nairobi topped the list after it recorded 11,795 cases while Kakamega came second after it recorded 6,686.
Mombasa recorded 995 cases of teenage pregnancies.
Lamu and Embu recorded the most list cases with 516 and 932 cases respectively.
According to human right defenders,some of these pregancies were as of sexual assault on the girls who were out of school due to Covid 19.
With lose of livelihoods of most parents, some of the children were forced to go into income-generating activities so as to contribute in the family’s daily needs.
This made some of the students go into dangerous casual work where some were sexually exploited by their employers.
As a result, cases of early marriages increased as parents sent away impregnated girls.
Naila Abdalla of Kisauni sisters for justice says most parents opted to take the girls to people who impregnated them.
Due to the prolonged closure of schools, the number of students who joined crime was also recorded to have increased as a result of prolonged closure of schools.
With a lot of time in their hands, many children joined criminal gangs while some abused drugs.
School closures also had implications for learners who relied on school feeding programs as a main source of nutrition. With everyone now at home, families’ ability to provide food for their children has been even further reduced due to loss of income and jobs.
School feeding programmes provided both educational and health benefits for the most vulnerable children thereby increasing enrolment rates, reducing absenteeism.
Measures after re-opening
99 percent of students have returned back to school according to education CS George Magoha.
Most of the schools have received back all the students with only a small percentage of girls who have not reported back after they gave birth or are about to give birth.
“Few girls who have either given birth and are nursing their young ones or are about to give birth have been allowed to remain home for some few days. After that, we will ensure they go back to school,” he said.
Magoha said school heads and education official will follow up on all students to ensure those who got pregnant during the closure of schools are back to school.
Millions of girls both in primary and high school will also benefit from free sanitary towels in order to keep them in school.
The CS said all regions have received the towels and will now embark in distributing them amongst its schools.
“1.7 million girls in primary school who are eligible for the sanitary and their colleagues in high school will receive sanitary package for nine months,” he noted.
This will ensure girls do not miss school due to lack of sanitary towels and will further protect them from sexual predators who prey them with excuse of providing them with the much needed towels.
President Kenyatta Unveils UN Mechanism To Stimulate Kenya's manufacturing Sector
President Uhuru Kenyatta today unveiled a USD 30 billion United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) mechanism to help stimulate Kenya’s manufacturing sector.
The initiative dubbed Programme for Country Partnership (PCP) Starter Pack, is a model for accelerating industrial development in UNIDO member states by mobilizing resources for investment in high potential economic sectors.
The PCP, which is also successfully being rolled out in Ethiopia, Senegal and Peru, will boost Kenya's manufacturing potential by injecting more than USD 30 billion in the sector in the next five years.
In his speech during the virtual launch of the initiative, President Kenyatta said Kenya opted for the new approach so as to accelerate inclusive and sustainable industrial development in the country.
“The potential contribution of the PCP includes an increased share of the manufacturing sector, food security and improved nutrition and increased domestic and foreign investment,” the President said.
The Head of State said Kenya will leverage on its strong market-based economy and existing institutional structures for industrial development to reap maximum benefits from the UN intervention.
At the event also addressed by UNIDO’s Director General Mr Li Yong, President Kenyatta announced that the National Development Implementation and Communication Cabinet Committee (NDICCC) led by Interior CS Dr Fred Matiang’i will spearhead the uptake of PCP in the country.
The President lobbied partners to support the implementation of PCP's anchor programmes saying the intervention's success will largely depend on the ability of stakeholders to mobilize adequate resources for its roll out.
“I, therefore, direct that the Cabinet Secretaries of the Ministries of Interior and Coordination of National Government; the National Treasury and Planning and the Industrialization, Trade and Enterprise Development, provide necessary guidance on finalization of PCP and mobilization of resources for its implementation,” the President directed.
At the same time, the Head of State launched the first PCP anchor project in the country, an Integrated Agro-Industrial Park on a 280-acre parcel of land donated by Nyamira County and urged other County Governments to join the initiative.
He said PCP will support both public and private sector institutions in Kenya to enhance their industrial productivity through innovation, technology transfer, financing as well as knowledge and skills upgrading.
“To enhance and promote competitiveness and within the PCP model, my Administration will continue to support the establishment of Industrial Parks and Special Economic Zones that will provide a competitive platform for industrial development.
“Kenya has the potential to develop Agro-processing facilities in 41 out of 47 Counties. The industrial parks and zones will provide the opportunity for Kenyan goods and products to enter the largest global markets with competitive products,” the President said.
In his remarks, Mr Li Yong said the collaboration between UNIDO and the Kenyan Government through PCP will help accelerate the country's industrialization agenda.
The UNIDO Director General, speaking from Geneva, Switzerland, announced his organization's plan to support Kenya in implementing its post Covid-19 economic recovery strategy.
“The PCP will join the opportunity to build back better by identifying sustainable pathway to support the recovery of the economy and sustainable industrialization,” Mr Yong said.
Alongside accelerating Kenya's manufacturing potential, the Director General said PCP will grow the country’s digital economy and boost the nation's standing as the largest economy in East Africa region.
Industrialization CS Betty Maina, UNIDO Kenya Country Representative Kawira Anne Bucyana and acting UN Resident Coordinator for Kenya Dr Medhin Tsehaiu also spoke at the virtual event attended by several senior government officers, UN bureaucrats and foreign diplomats.
