Hong Kong Sevens Rugby – Kenyans start with winning ways

Kenya who have been placed in group F of The Hong Kong 7’s by winning thier first match 17 – 10 to West Indies. Tomorrow they have 2 more matches against USA and Scotland tomorrow.

Hunger alleviation for dummies – Kenyan edition!!!

I should say that this has got to be the most brilliant idea that has ever been effected in this market in regards to raising food for the starving population. Maybe for once the Goverment should watch and learn how its done, we could spin it off and call it “Hunger alleviation for dummies – Kenyan edition”

We have all talked about hunger, people starving and what we need or need not to do. There were food appeals but no one has mastered the art yet of galvanizing the ordinary kenyan to share the little they have than Radio Africa.

Here are the steps

1. Join forces with a reputable NGO in this case Red Cross
2. Talk about the campaign and set a target – in this case 200 tonnes and 2 million shillings.
3. Look for the easiest way to let the ordinary mwananchi to invest – Drop off points at Nakumatt & Uchumi’s Countrywide. Mpesa the cash to a given number for Red Cross
4. Set a definate timespan – 24 hours in this case on a particular day.
5. Invite other partners to increase the appeal – Metro FM, Coro FM, Kamame FM, K24, Milele FM, Ghetto Radio, Iqra FM, Baraka FM, Kass FM, Homeboyz .
6. Do it and announce the results – 264 tonnes and 2 million shillings.
7. Invite Corporates to partner with you by reducing the price of stuff being bought and contributing some of the proceeds to the venture – Unga, Pembe, Inca’s etc

Howz that for one day of work?

As for the Capital FM, Standard Group, KCB and Railways Mercy Train campaign i dont see it being as effective as the 24 hours for Kenya campaign. Im sorry but we are a very immediate generation, who want to donate today not in the next few weeks or one month. They should have thrown in thier lot with all the other stations and do one big thing!!! Guess that boat has sailed!!!

As for the Goverment i guess we should make this into a manual for the special programs ministry…it might help them, just might…

Commercial break

Ad: “Mpango wa Kando”

Client: National Aids Control Council

The National Aids Control Council was set up with a mandate to provide policy and a strategic framework for mobilizing and coordinating resources for prevention of HIV transmission and provision of care for the infected and affected. Currently the National Aids Control council works in conjunction with development partners, civil society, and the private & public sector. Previous campaigns by the National aids control council included the VCT centres campaigns, to urge people to get tested and know their status.

In this new campaign which has been running for the last 2 months, we open on a scene of a husband and wife watching TV. The ad comes on and we see a guy walk onto screen. It’s Jimmi Gathu, and he begins to talk about the fact that new research shows that most new HIV infections are occurring within a marriage. The ad catches the couple’s attention and they begin to watch with interest.

The narrator continues to explain the reasons for this; that many men in marriages have another woman on the side. The guy watching TV starts looking away obviously stung by those words as his wife gives him a very bad look which makes him even more uncomfortable. Jimmi Gathu, continues with his hard hitting message, indicating there is only one way to cut down on such infections. Married men need to stop having a spare wheel or another woman on the side. The ad ends with the NACC logo as the campaign sponsor.

The radio ads follow the same line and tone featuring Jimmi Gathu’s voice over, while the press ads illustrate a picture of a couple with their ‘spare wheels’ or lovers who also have picture of their lovers; the scene eventually builds into one tangled messy picture that captures the essence of unfaithfulness. The ads end in the same way urging men to stop having a lover on the side.

This campaign is very hard hitting and straight to the point. It gets the message across by using facts and uncovering common truths that no one feels comfortable to address. The fact that it uses Jimmi Gathu as an opinion former is very key because it helps the audience to connect with the facts. Jimmi is correctly positioned to discuss this issue in public because of his current role on National TV and also because he is married; so he knows what happens in marriage. He uses his credibility to appeal to other men to be more responsible and stop ‘mpango wa kando’ or ‘spare wheels’. It’s a very well written and directed ad, which delivers the message home with a punch.

Commercial Break – Coke Brrrr

Ad: “Brrr…on the Coke side of life”

Client: Coca Cola

Coca Cola as a brand needs no introduction and locally Coca Cola has been expanding their product lines to offer more than just soda. In the Kenyan market they offer water, juice, coffee and mixes under a number of different brands like Minute Maid, Chaywa, Dasani, Novida, Schweppes etc.

Last year, Coca Cola launched the original “Brrr” campaign ad, which caused a stir worldwide and in Africa. Locally the ad was quite a hit and it did help that the lead actor was local and is popularly known due to his comedy on one of the leading local stations. It’s not often that a commercial works its way into the fabric of society and becomes a universally adopted catchphrase, but in this case “Brrr” became a buzz word both locally and internationally.

The new “Brrr” commercial is the second phase of the campaign showing the spread of the African “Brrr” effect from country to country. The commercial begins in an International conference and we can see there is an air of boredom in the room. It looks hot and stuffy and our African leader and his sidekick quite bored, when the sidekick has a bright idea and produces a cold Coke from his bag. The African leader picks up the soda and takes a well deserved sip and produces a loud “Brrr” that reverberates across the room.

Everyone around the room is jolted back into reality, as people start to wonder what the “Brrr” is. We see as the Brrr sound travels from country to country, as different people try out Coca Cola including the huge guy in a tavern in the US whose “Brrr” sound reverberates all throughout the Grand Canyon. The ad ends as the African leader is trying to tutor the Japanese ambassador on how to do a “Brrr” which they can’t quite do. In desperation Charles offers him a Coke and after a sip he does a perfect “Brrr.” The ad then ends with the line “Its Brrr on the Coke side of Life.”

The first phase of this particular campaign was fun and counting it was shot in Zanzibar was really easy to relate to. Charles Bukeko, the lead actor did a fantastic job and since the campaign was quite humourous making “Brrr” part of local lingo. In this ad the African “Brrr” is being exported internationally to other markets, to continue the Coke side of life theme. In my opinion, this ad is quite good though it lacks the spark the first ad had maybe due to the fact that its more suited for an international audience since it looks to exporting the African “Brrr” to the rest of the world, or maybe its because it’s a sequel. A good ad but the first one was excellent.

even our Prime Minister Raila Odinga needs to take Responsibility

This has been an eventful week that began with a legalized student demonstration through the streets of Nairobi. Now im a Kenyan and i know there is nothing like a peaceful demonstration especially where University students are involved. So it was quite interesting when the Prime Minister actually gave a directive that the march should be legallized and that the police should offer protection. The protests began well with the march to hand out petitions to various goverment organs within the CBD. After that the students were to go back to campus but they proceeded to blockade Uhuru Highway with trucks, harass motorists and pelt them with stones.

Worst of all they proceeded to root businesses in the vicinity in the full glare of the camera’s and of course engage in thier all favourite partime sport of engaging the police in running battles. Of course the Student Leadership did apologise and shift blame from thier students to other holigans who may have joined the protests as they refused to take responsibility.

Worst of all though was the Prime Minister, Raila Odinga said he did not authorise the demonstration and he cannot be blamed for the looting that took place. This from the number 2 principle in the country!!!! How do we expect him then to take responsibility for all the other scandals in the coalition goverment if he can take responsibility for a small thing as an University students demo???? I am quite disappointed in his leadership, the Prime Minister post comes with good money, cars and many other trapping, he just forgot it also comes with one of the biggest things Kenya currently lacks – Responsible Leadership.

A trip to Embu Town

A bit of History about Embu town from wikipaedia.org

Embu is a large town in Kenya, located approximately 120 kilometers (75 miles) northeast of Nairobi towards Mount Kenya. Embu serves as the provincial headquarters of Eastern Province in Kenya and is also the district headquarters of Embu District. Located on the southeastern slopes of Mount Kenya, the town of Embu has a population of 41,092 (as of 1999).

Embu town is a quaint little town which serves as the provincial headquarters of  Eastern province. The road is quite nice and its about an hour’s drive from Nairobi. The town boasts quite a number of banks including KCB, Equity Bank, Family Bank, Consolidated Bank, National Bank and  Postbank.

It also has the provincial hospital and quite a number of educational institutions. The place to stay is Izaak Walton Inn, which charges 3,500 for a double room and 5,000 for a superior room.  The rooms were quite nice with a hot water shower and a TV with DSTV in each room. The inn also has a bar a restaurant and a swimming pool. Other hotels in Embu include Villa Hotel, Minni inn, Embu Hotels etc.

For dinner i would recommend Morning Glory Hotel on the main street right next to National Bank. They have very good food, friendly service and nice big portions from a comprehensive menu which includes Chicken and Beef.

The major petrol stations can be found here with the Pesapoint available at the Kobil Petrol station near Consolidated Bank on the main street. The presence of Naiva’s supermarket makes it a familiar site if you are from Nairobi though curiously there are 2 Nakumatt billboards with the nearest Nakumatt being in Meru over 150 km away.

If you haven’t been to Embu town, take some time and enjoy the drive there getting away from the hassle & bustle of Nairobi. Its extremely refreshing and rejuvenating.

The Virgin Atlantic boys start thier 7’s world cup hunt today!!!

pix courtesy of Nation Media Group

The Virgin Atlantic sponsored Kenyan team begins their sevens World Cup matches today against Tunisia and tomorrow will play Hong Kong. Lets cheer our boys on as they continue their winning ways…

First match today at 4.30 against Tunisia and second match tomorrow at approximately 12.30 against Hong Kong.

The scores as they stand

match 1

Kenya 29 Tunisia 7

match 2

Kenya 43 Hong Kong 7

The big one is on at 19:04 — Kenya vs England and im rooting for the Virgin Boyz to whoop some England Butt. Go Kenya Go!!!

So Kenya lost to England 26 -7 then proceeded to beat the defending champions Fiji 26 -7 to book a place in the semi finals.

In the semi’s Kenya lost to Argentina 12 -0 to bow out of the tournament. A very impressive showing by our boys and this year we have consistently stamped our authority on the 7’s circuit by beating powerhouses like England, South Africa, New Zealand and Fiji.

Next up the Hong Kong 7’s…were we are gunning for the cup.

Congrats to the Virgin Atlantic Sponsored Kenyan 7’s team

Of course we do need to remember the marketing coup this has been for Virgin Atlantic after outbidding Tusker to sponsor the team. Woe unto EABL, this would have given them mad publicity and of course opportunity to screen the matches as guys had a sip of their favourite beer Tusker.

Banks reporting season continues…

Well the Bank reporting season is continuing with the big banks leading the line. Of course first up was Equity bank who always are the bearer of good news, announcing their increase in profits. Then came along Barclays, KCB, NIC bank and just yesterday Standard Chartered. Now of course not being a banker or an accountant i can quite decifer alot from thier financial statements and for that i would have to refer you to the blog bankelele.

Out of the banks that have announced their results Equity, Barclays, Standard Chartered and KCB have been on the expansion drive with 9, 6,4 and 12 new branches respectively. Out of the 4 only Standard Chartered has a reduction in profits from the year before which they attributed to expansion and staff costs.

Coop Bank who had thier IPO recently are next up tomorrow and they should be followed by National bank, CFC Stanbic, CBA Bank, DTB & I&M Bank. The general profitability of the industry should grow though we are yet to see what kind of results the likes of Dubai Bank, K-Rep, Oriental Commercial and City Finance will post.

With 43 banks with the anticipated entry of UBA and Bank PHB into this market, consolidation in the industry would be the way to go whether through the passing of a law or by default. Currently this is how the banks are ranked according to no of branches and ATM’s from CBK’s recent survey on bank rates and lending charges
Kenya Commercial Bank Ltd 147 12 168


Barclays Bank of Kenya Ltd 101 6 227
Equity Bank Ltd 90 9 306
Co-operative Bank of Kenya Ltd. 51 148
Family Bank 38 7 53
National Bank of Kenya Ltd 34 58


Standard Chartered Bank (K) Ltd 34 4 63

K-Rep Bank 28 2 29


CFC-Stanbic Bank Kenya Ltd. 17 29


Commercial Bank of Africa Ltd 17 7


National Industrial Credit Bank 15 20

Diamond Trust Bank of Kenya 12 1 15

Consolidated Bank of Kenya Ltd. 12 11


Housing Finance 10 11


Imperial Bank Limited 11 0

Investments & Mort. Bank Ltd. 10 11

Prime Bank Limited 10 1 0

Southern Credit Banking Corp. 9 0
Trans-National Bank Ltd. 9 8

African Banking Corporation. 8 0

EcoBank Ltd 8 1


Fina Bank Ltd 8 1 7

Bank of Baroda Kenya Ltd 7 0

Chase Bank (K) Ltd 6 5

Fidelity Commercial Bank Ltd. 6 1 0

Giro Commercial Bank 6 0
Bank of Africa Ltd 6 5


Guardian Bank Ltd 5 0

Oriental commercial Bank Ltd 5 1 0
Bank of India (K)Ltd 4 0

Credit Bank Ltd 4 0
Equatorial Commercial Bank Ltd. 4 0

Habib Bank A.G. Zurich 4 0
Habib Bank Ltd 4 0

Paramount-Universal Bank Ltd 4 0

Citibank N.A. 3 0
Dubai Bank (K) Ltd 3 0


Gulf Africa Bank 3 3 5
First Community 2 2 0
Middle East Bank Kenya Ltd. 2 1
City Finance Bank Ltd 1 0
Development Bank of Kenya Ltd. 1 0
Victoria Commercial Bank 1 0
Bank Branches Change ATMs Kenswitch Pesapoint
BANK BRANCHES AND ATMS
Banks with a larger network of branches and ATMS are able to offer their customers greater accessibility. From Dec- 2007 to June
2008, 50 new bank branches were opened.
Note: Customers of banks which are members of independent ATM networks Pesa Point and KenSwith can access their monies through additional ATMS. Kenswitch has 152
ATMs and Pesa Point have 120 ATMs. If your bank is a member of both networks you can access your cash through 272 ATMs in addition to your banks network of ATMs.

Roads, Roads and more Road repairs

First Kenya was a walking nation back in the day when Michuki was Minister for Transport, then a working nation as President Kibaki likes to say now we are a repairing nation. Don’t get me wrong i love the fact that every other road in Nairobi is being repaired, or they are planning to repair it. Mombasa Road, Enterprise Road, Jogoo Road, Lusaka Road, Valley road etc

Thika Road is next in the pipeline and the design has been changed to 4 lanes from 3 lanes a piece. I love driving so good roads are something im always looking forward too and i can say the roads have changed for the better though sometimes the contracts take much longer than they should.

So the coalition goverment is not a total failure…there is some good that has come out of it…

KPL league back with a bang!!!

Well the new KPL season is back and it does promise some exciting football. The Kenya Premier League consists of 16 teams with AFC Leopards & Sofapaka having joined from the nationwide league. Currently the league table looks as follows.

my team Thika United ( and not coz they are currently leading) have been in very good form winning 3 matches and drawing one. The deal with Supersport is on going and you can catch all the action on Supersport Select over the weekends.

So have you picked a local team to support?

League Standings

Pos	Team	Pld	Won	Pts
1	Thika United	4	3	10
2	Sofapaka	4	2	8
3	Mathare United	4	2	7
4	KCB	4	2	7
5	Western Stima	4	2	7
6	Gor Mahia	4	2	6
7	City Stars	4	2	6
8	Red Berets	4	1	5
9	Bandari	4	1	5
10	Agrochemicals	4	1	5
11	Sher Karuturi	3	1	4
12	Tusker	3	1	4
13	Ulinzi Stars	4	1	4
14	SonySugar	4	1	3
15	Chemelil Sugar	4	1	3
16	AFC Leopards	4	0	1