By Zephania Ubwani

Arusha — At least eleven Tanzanian nationals have landed in plum jobs at the East African Community after last week’s appointments which saw several positions filled following the recent mass exit of professionals.

The former CEO of the Tanzania Telecommunications Limited (TTCL) Kamugisha Kazaura was appointed the director of infrastructure, one of the senior positions in the secretariat.

Notable promotions include those of Ms Ruth Mtoi Simba, until last week the principal human resources officer, who becomes the organisation’s director of Human Resources and Administration. Ugandan national Kenneth A. Bagamuhunda landed in the prestigious post of director general of Customs and Trade until recently held by Peter Kiguta from Kenya who has retired from the service of the Community.

Mr Bagamuhunda has for many years served as the director of Customs at the secretariat. The Directorate of Customs and Trade is a key unit in the EAC responsible for trade and allied matters.

The 42 appointments were made last week by the EAC Council of Ministers, which is the policy organ of the Community, after interviews which were conducted by the EAC Ad Hoc Service Commission which was set up last year.

The positions filled were those of the professional staff who retired upon attaining the mandatory retirement age of 60 years or expiry of their fixed term contracts.

Other Tanzanians appointed include Ms Suma W. Mwakyusa, who becomes the principal international relations officer, Fahari G. Marwa, the principal agricultural economist and Ms Monica Mihigo who becomes the principal trade officer.

Others include Suleiman Ahmed Athumani (materials pavement officer), Anthony Minja (customs officer), Alusaria D. Swai (accountant) and Ally Dotto (accountant with the East African Legislative Assembly).

Fabian Mashauri was appointed a principal health officer with the recently-established East African Health Research Commission, an institution of the EAC to be based in Bujumbura, Burundi. The appointments, the highest in number since a major recruitment drive for the EAC in 2007/08, saw Tanzania having the highest slots (eleven), ahead of Uganda (10), Rwanda (eight), Kenya (seven) and Burundi five.

Thirty one of the appointments went to the Secretariat, which is the executive arm of the EAC and others to Eala and institutions under the Community, among them the Lake Victoria Basin Commission, the East African Science and Technology Commission and EAHRC.

None has been appointed from South Sudan as the new entrant into the bloc has not been fully integrated into the activities of the Community.

The Council further directed the EAC secretariat to ensure that an induction programme is conducted before the appointed staff assume office.

Early this year, the EAC secretary general Liberat Mfumukeko announced the imminent retirement of 52 senior and middle cadre officials between February and end of the year, the first time a large number of staff to exit the Community.

The exact number of employees working at the EAC, its organs and institutions directly getting annual budget from the EAC is believed to be between 200 and 300.

By June 2014 the secretariat alone had 231 employees, of whom six were executive staff, 69 professionals, 46 general service staff, 84 project staff and 16 temporary employees. Eala and EACJ had 24 staff members respectively.

OPINIONBy Christopher Charamba

On Wednesday evening, yet another tragedy struck the country. A South African-bound bus was sideswiped by a haulage truck along the Harare-Beitbridge Highway and caught fire at Nyamatikiti River near Chaka Shopping Centre in the Midlands Province.

At least 30 passengers were feared dead in the crash with most of the victims burnt beyond recognition.

The bus, reportedly, had over 60 passengers on board, while the truck was transporting tyres.

This is not the first accident to occur on the Harare-Beitbridge Highway.

Among the several accidents recorded along the highway, 19 people died in July 2014 after a road accident involving a commuter omnibus and a truck.

Police spokesperson Chief Superintendent Paul Nyathi said at that time they were “concerned with the narrowness of the Masvingo-Beitbridge Road and appeal to drivers to exercise caution on this road.”

Last year in March 2016, three people perished on the spot while 29 others were injured, after a South Africa-bound bus veered off the road and overturned along the Masvingo-Beitbridge Road.

The following month, 12 people were killed, while 45 others were injured when an MB Transport bus collided head-on with a haulage truck 45km outside Beitbridge.

After the accident, Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister Joram Gumbo appealed to drivers, especially those of public service vehicles, and other road users to exercise caution when travelling during the night and early hours of the morning.

Last month, 14 people who were on their way to a funeral died in a road traffic accident where a haulage truck collided with the commuter omnibus they were travelling on.

In her statement, national politice spokesperson Senior Assistant Commissioner Charity Charamba said: “Due to the state of our roads, the ZRP is appealing to motorists to avoid travelling at night and observe speed limits to preserve life.”

She added: “As police, we are quite saddened by the unnecessary loss of lives in situations which we could be avoided. Let’s all preserve the sanctity of human life.”

The state of Zimbabwean roads has been a major talking point where road accidents are concerned.

Police and Government officials have urged road users to exercise caution.

However, more work needs to be done to improve the quality of national roads, particularly, major highways that have a heavy flow of traffic.

The dualisation of the Harare-Masvingo-Beitbridge Highway is one project that would go a long way in improving the quality of that busy traffic artery.

However, the project which has been on the cards since 2002 is yet to take off though Government has insisted that its launch is imminent.

The project initially stagnated for 12 years between 2002 and 2014 because ZimHighways, awarded the tender in 2002, allegedly struggled to secure funding.

Things have since changed as Government awarded the tender for the dualisation project to Geiger International in association with the China Habour Engineering Company Limited.

An inter-ministerial committee also met with the financiers of the project to finalise implementation modalities.

Minister Gumbo, told a parliamentary portfolio committee in February that an independent contractor would supervise the project to avoid the country being short-changed by poor workmanship, like what happened on the Plumtree-Harare-Mutare Road rehabilitation project.

“We are hoping that His Excellency is going to do the ground-breaking ceremony, which will trigger commencement of construction of this road,” said Dr Gumbo.

“The spot where the ground-breaking ceremony is going to take place has already been identified. The engineers from Geiger International and their contracted company, some of them are already in the country.

“Things are moving. Before you go for Independence, work will have started. That is the timeline that I can give you.”

The importance of this highway project cannot be overstated as it will ensure smoother flow of traffic and reduce the risk of accidents.

Potholes, poorly lit roads with no clear marking as well as stray animals all pose a major risk to motorists particularly those travelling long distances and at night.

Government should therefore expedite the dualisation of the Harare – Beitbridge highway.

This road is a major corridor for the transportation of goods and people and has significant economic status to country.

It is, therefore, imperative that the safety of motorists and passengers be of the utmost importance and constructing a better road will help to achieve this.

In its construction, the contractors should also look at fencing the side of the roads, particularly, in areas where animals are found as they too pose a risk to motorists.

Further delays in beginning this project will has a negative effect to the lives that are lost when accidents occur.

While work on the highway needs to take place immediately, motorists, particularly those who ferry passengers should exercise extreme caution because of the poor state roads.

The loss of life can be avoided in many instances if those in control of the vehicles prepare themselves for the risks and drive responsibly. Motorists should avoid speeding and avoid travelling late at night.

In relation to road traffic accidents, there is also need for a comprehensive Road Accident Fund to assist victims of such tragic events.

Government, last year, stated efforts to introduce such a fund were taking shape as they engaged regional teams to carefully work on policies aimed at assisting victims of road carnage.

Minister Gumbo, said in-depth research was a necessity before the introduction of the accident fund.

“We are working on structures towards the achievement of the fund and so far we have been relying on regional feedback through case studies and visits so that we come up with something that is well researched and well organised,” he said.

“We are working towards coming up with a policy that would have been properly researched to avoid any shortfalls. I agree that we may be legging behind on the process, but we can assure the nation that the fund will soon be finalised.”

Minister Gumbo added third party insurance was one avenue to compensate road accident victims, but had not helped matters as it was exacerbated by the proliferation of fake insurance policies.

He said third party insurance was being administered privately by insurance companies hence his ministry could not comment substantively on the actual amount being collected periodically.

“In other countries, third party insurance was administered by Government, but in Zimbabwe’s case, there had been reliance on insurance companies as agents since the colonial era.”

In Zimbabwe, the Road Traffic Act in Section 38B (1) compels drivers of passenger public vehicles to get a policy of insurance providing a benefit to every person who suffers a loss or injury in an accident.

Section 38 (1) (a) of the same Act provides for $2 000 compensation in case of death of or permanent injury of the victim.

The Act, in sub-section (1) (a) further provides for the payment of $350 for medical and funeral expenses in case of injuries or death respectively.

The law also provides, in Section 38C, which limits liability in respect of children and small claims, for $200 compensation for death or permanent disability for a child of six years or below and $300 for a 14-year-old or below.

The child who gets $300 should however be older than six years.

A driver found in the above is liable to imprisonment of at least one or a fine which would be determined by the courts.

The Road Traffic Act in Section 38D requires a driver of a passenger service vehicle to ensure that proof of insurance is displayed on the windscreen and failure to display it would be fined or jailed for up to three months.

Power generation is one of the most significant challenges facing Sub-Saharan Africa and the shortage of essential electrical infrastructure often means that social and economic development can be negatively affected.

The repercussions of an inadequate power supply are felt by many in the region and particularly by business owners and farmers such as Agrocamin Cameroon, which is a leading poultry hatchery in the central African region.

Given the nature of poultry hatcheries, even a 30-minute power outage can cripple a business as all the eggs in the incubators would perish due to improper storage temperature control. Agrocam, located in Douala, previously used a diesel generator as a backup to ensure the smooth running of its hatchery, but this proved costly given the prolonged outages.

The company has now purchased a GE Jenbacher J316 gas engine from Clarke Energy, GE’s distributor of Jenbacher gas engines in Cameroon. According to the International Energy Agency, natural gas will be the fastest growing fuel in use for power generation in Africa.

“GE’s natural gas-fired Jenbacher engine will produce a nominal electrical output to power the hatchery and egg tray production facility, providing a highly  efficient, economical solution to meet our needs and to realise substantial  annual savings,” said Philippe Noutchogouin, Agrocam managing  director.

The Jenbacher J316 gas engine will produce 813Kw of power for Agrocam. Heat will be recovered from the generator’s exhaust gases in the form of hot air and will be injected into the ovens of the egg tray production machines for  drying. This will save the cost of fuel currently being used for this process and will therefore increase efficiency, and allow for the optimum use of the  gas generator.

“More  than ever before, Agrocam believes that a stable, reliable and cost-effective source of power is crucial to revive the poultry business in Cameroon, which suffered a big hit from the 2016 avian influenza [or bird flu] outbreak that paralysed poultry farmers in  Douala and the surrounding areas. Energy currently represents 50% of our operational costs,” said Jean Samuel Noutchogouin, Agrocam board chairman.

GE’s Jenbacher Type 3 gas engines offer proven savings on service and fuel consumption as well as excellent efficiency. They are also suitable for a range of applicable gas types including natural gas, associated petroleum gas, propane, biogas, sewage gas, landfill gas, coal mine gas and other special gases such as coke, wood and pyrolysis gases. “The  technical maturity and high degree of reliability of GE’s Jenbacher Type 3 gas engines make them a leader in their range. Long service intervals, a maintenance-friendly engine design and low fuel consumption ensure a high  operating efficiency, while enhanced components prolong service life,” said  Ali Hjaiej, Clarke Energy Africa business development director.

Africa is home to many of the  fastest growing economies in the world and while this growth is being hindered by unreliable power generation, there are companies such as GE, which are offering solutions to these problems with a range of power products and services.

The naira on Wednesday, weakened against the dollar at the parallel market, the News Agency of Nigeria reports.

The Nigerian currency lost 8 points to exchange at N398, weaker than N390 recorded on Tuesday, while the Pound Sterling and the Euro closed at N485 and N415.

At the Bureau de Change, BDC, window, the dollar was sold at N362 to the dollar, while the Pound Sterling and the Euro closed at N483 and N430.

Trading at the interbank window saw the Naira close at N306.2 to the dollar.

Traders at the market said that they expected the Naira to appreciate by Thursday as BDCs gets additional dollar allocation from CBN.

Meanwhile, Aminu Gwadabe, President, Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria, said that the additional injection of $10,000 by the CBN to BDCs would help to checkmate speculation.

Mr. Gwadabe said that CBN’s action justified its determination to continue to strengthen the Naira and get it out of the grips of speculators and hoarders.

The CBN, last week, stated that it had increased the volume of dollar sold to BDCs from 8,000 to 10,000 dollars bi-weekly.

The apex bank hoped to stabilise the Naira exchange rate through its interventions at the foreign exchange market.

(NAN)

PRESS RELEASE

Fitch Ratings has downgraded South Africa’s Long-Term Foreign- and Local-Currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) to ‘BB+’ from ‘BBB-‘. The Outlooks are Stable.

The issue ratings on South Africa’s senior unsecured foreign- and local-currency bonds have been downgraded to ‘BB+’ from ‘BBB-‘. The rating on the sukuk trust certificates issued by RSA Sukuk No. 1 Trust has also been downgraded to ‘BB+’ from ‘BBB-‘, in line with South Africa’s Long-Term Foreign-Currency IDR.

The Short-Term Foreign-and Local-Currency IDRs and the rating on the short-term local-currency securities have been downgraded to ‘B’ from ‘F3’. The Country Ceiling has been revised down to ‘BBB-‘ from ‘BBB’.

KEY RATING DRIVERS
The downgrade of South Africa’s Long-Term IDRs reflects Fitch’s view that recent political events, including a major cabinet reshuffle, will weaken standards of governance and public finances.

In Fitch’s view, the cabinet reshuffle, which involved the replacement of the finance minister, Pravin Gordhan, and the deputy finance minister, Mcebisi Jonas, is likely to result in a change in the direction of economic policy. The reshuffle partly reflected efforts by the out-going finance minister to improve the governance of state-owned enterprises (SOEs). The reshuffle is likely to undermine, if not reverse, progress in SOE governance, raising the risk that SOE debt could migrate onto the government’s balance sheet.

Differences over the country’s expensive nuclear programme preceded the dismissal of a previous finance minister, Nhlanhla Nene, in December 2015 and in Fitch’s view may have also contributed to the decision for the recent reshuffle. Under the new cabinet, including a new energy minister, the programme is likely to move relatively quickly. The state-owned electricity company, Eskom, has already issued a request for information for nuclear suppliers and is expected to issue a request for proposals for nuclear power stations later this year. The treasury under its previous leadership had said that Eskom could not absorb the nuclear programme with its current approved guarantees, so the treasury will likely have to substantially increase guarantees to Eskom.

This would increase contingent liabilities, which are already sizeable. According to the 2017/18 budget, the government’s guarantee exposure to public institutions was ZAR308.3 billion at end-March 2017, up from ZAR255.8 billion a year earlier. The main SOEs had additional liabilities of ZAR463 billion in 2016 with no explicit guarantee but with a significant probability that the government would step in should SOEs be unable to service the debt. The government has repeatedly needed to support SOEs, including Eskom, which is responsible for a large share of liabilities.

The new finance minister has stated that he does not intend to change fiscal policy and remains committed to expenditure ceilings that have been a pillar of fiscal consolidation. However, Fitch believes that following the government reshuffle, fiscal consolidation will be less of a priority given the president’s focus on “radical socioeconomic transformation”. This means that renewed shortfalls in revenues, for example as a result of lower than expected GDP growth, are less likely to be compensated by expenditure and revenue measures. This could put upward pressure on general government debt, which at an estimated 53% of GDP at end-March 2017 was already slightly above the ‘BB’ category median of 51%.

The tensions within the ANC will mean that political energy will be absorbed by efforts to maintain party unity and fend off leadership challenges and to placate rising social pressures for addressing inequality, poverty and weak public service delivery. The Treasury’s ability to withstand departmental demands for increased spending may also weaken.

Political uncertainty was already an important factor behind weak growth last year, as in Fitch’s assessment it has affected the willingness of companies to invest. The agency believes that the cabinet reshuffle will further undermine the investment climate. Fitch forecasts GDP growth of 1.2% in 2017 and 2.1% in 2018, but the reshuffle has raised downside risks.

South Africa’s ratings also reflect the following key rating drivers:

The current account deficit narrowed to 3.3% of GDP in 2016 from 4.4% in 2015, on the back of import compression reflecting weak domestic demand, low oil prices and increasing investment income from abroad. This improvement, together with the flexible exchange rate, will contain pressures should external financing dry up. The government’s low reliance on foreign-currency financing, which accounted for just 11.3% of debt at end-March 2017, is also helping to contain external pressures.

Most indicators of economic development are in line with ‘BB’ category medians. GDP per capita at market prices is estimated at USD5,207 for 2016, compared with a median of USD5,007. The World Bank’s governance indicator, at the 59th percentile, is well above the ‘BB’ median and more in line with the ‘BBB’ median. However, this may not adequately reflect governance issues that were highlighted in the recent state of capture report by the public prosecutor and governance may deteriorate as a result of the reshuffle. The rating is supported by a sound banking sector, which has a Fitch Bank Systemic Risk Indicator of ‘bbb’.

SOVEREIGN RATING MODEL (SRM) and QUALITATIVE OVERLAY (QO)
Fitch’s proprietary SRM assigns South Africa a score equivalent to a rating of ‘BBB’ on the Long-Term FC IDR scale.

Fitch’s sovereign rating committee adjusted the output from the SRM to arrive at the final LT FC IDR by applying its QO, relative to rated peers, as follows:
– Macroeconomic Performance, Policies and Prospect: -1 notch, to reflect South Africa’s weak growth prospects relative to the ‘BBB’ category median, with important repercussions for public finances.
– Structural Features: -1 notch, to reflect the expected deterioration in governance standards, particularly related to SOEs.

Fitch’s SRM is the agency’s proprietary multiple regression rating model that employs 18 variables based on three year centred averages, including one year of forecasts, to produce a score equivalent to a LT FC IDR. Fitch’s QO is a forward-looking qualitative framework designed to allow for adjustment to the SRM output to assign the final rating, reflecting factors within our criteria that are not fully quantifiable and/or not fully reflected in the SRM.

RATING SENSITIVITIES
The following risk factors could, individually or collectively, result in negative rating action:
– A failure to stabilise the government debt/GDP ratio or an increase in contingent liabilities.
– Failure of GDP growth to recover sustainably, for example, due to sustained uncertainty about economic policy.
– Rising net external debt to levels that raise the potential for serious financing strains.

The following risk factors could, individually or collectively, result in positive rating action:
– An improvement in governance standards that is supportive of a stronger business and investment climate and a sustained upturn in economic growth.
– A marked narrowing in the budget deficit and a reduction in the government debt/GDP ratio.
– An improvement in the country’s net external debt/GDP ratio.

KEY ASSUMPTIONS
Fitch expects global economic trends and commodity prices to develop as outlined in Fitch’s March Global Economic Outlook.

Today, the 6th year anniversary of the commencement of the Grand Ethiopia Renaissance Dam (GERD) is being celebrated at the construction site. Who could have imagined what shape GERD would take in six years time when the late Prime Minister Meles Zenawi laid the surprising cornerstone? Today, the six year old Dam graces and fills Ethiopians with hope and triumph. Ethiopians from all walks of life, the Diaspora as well as friends of Ethiopia came forward with all they have to contribute for the Dam.

GERD is symbol of the new Ethiopia that its construction heralds and symbolizes this generation’s triumph over poverty. As Ethiopia is a country where one can find monumental heritages of generations, the Dam is a landmark and live testimonies of the elevated spirit of the present generations.

The move for GERD is one of the exemplary deeds of Ethiopians from all corners of the country and abroad as they bravely lit the torch of freedom for all black people of the world defeating the Italian colonial power at Adwa.

The shining victory of Adwa is one of the top world history accounts ever happened. As the baton has been handed down to generations, every generation has put its fingerprint. The winning spirit of Adwa has come up on GERD as all Ethiopians are marching and vigilantly watching its progress.

GERD is not only the brand development project but also a symbol of strong unity of Ethiopians that boldly demonstrate their wish and commitment to get rid of poverty. GERD is elevating the spirit of Ethiopians to fight poverty at whatever cost. The active engagement of Nations, Nationalities and Peoples of Ethiopia has proven the unshakable commitment and unity to accomplish the project.

To everyone’s surprise the support from here and abroad for the construction of the Dam is still afresh. The recently launched GERD Torch Tour across the country is the other version of Ethiopians’ determination that vividly crystallizes their unity.

Every Ethiopian is looking forward for the completion of the Dam. The construction is underway 24/7. The multi-purposed Dam project is shaping the new Ethiopia.

Above all, the GERD is a vehicle to country’s renaissance journey. Though there have been attempts to disrupt the project, Ethiopians have kept on building their towering project that stimulate country’s economy through supplying electricity. The ‘ ‘Yes We Can and No difference for the GERD’ are the winning spirits that reign.

The nations, nationalities, and people of Ethiopia have come to narrate the new version of journey over the last two decades and look forward with great hope for the realization of country’s renaissance.

What is more, GERD has created opportunity for the Diaspora to participate in the development of the country in an organized manner. It breaks the old scenario and changes the course of engagement. No one will come to stand unison for your country that strives to defeat poverty.

Your role and contribution is indispensable in promoting the changing image of the country. The experience and exposure in your host countries would offer a potential opportunity to your motherland.

Ethiopians are attesting for the rest of the world that associating Ethiopia with poverty will no longer be a valid proposition. The dirt of poverty will be washed away by handwork and determination.

GERD, one of the largest Dams in the world, is heralding the changing image of Ethiopia that the country becomes the source of inspiration for Africans and is at the forefront of advancing African causes.

GERD is instilling and advocating equitable and reasonable utilization of natural resources. It has also created a sense of cooperation and mutual understanding among the riparian countries.

Despite the rumors and negative comments by some pessimists, the construction of the dam has kept on crystallizing the unity of Nations , Nationalities and Peoples of Ethiopia since GERD is one of the commanding heights towards renaissance.

By Abduel Elinaza

TCCIA Investment Company Ltd (TICL) seeks extension of its initial public offer (IPO) for two more weeks after missing the target by far.

The six-week IPO exercise raised 1.0bn/- only which is 2.3 per cent of the 45bn/- target. The firm was expected to be listed on Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE) by April 24. TICL sponsoring broker, Tanzania Securities Limited (TSL) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Joaquim Bonaventure said the outcome was disappointing but they have not lost hope.

“The IPO period came to an end before we sealed a deal with a foreign underwriter.

The underwriter may buy 75 per cent of the IPO.

“We have written to capital market asking for extension after Vodacom ends its IPO so as we conclude the deal,” Mr Bonaventure said. TICL, an investment wing of Tanzania Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture, put at offer 112,500,000 ordinary shares at 400/- each.

The CEO said TICL’s IPO was blanketed by another IPO by Vodacom that went on sale some two weeks after. “Economic hardship also had its toll on the IPO. Investors failed to split their little cash to both IPO,” Mr Bonaventure said.

Earlier, stockbrokers were upbeat that the IPO target would be met based on strategies laid on ground to sell shares through TCCIA scattered branches across the country.

On top of that stockbrokers banked on selling shares in SADC and EAC member states since the IPO is open for foreigners as well.

TICL,mostly invests on listed securities, the blue-chip stocks of the DSE to record a total return of 422.16 per cent which translates into a compounded annual growth rate of 39.17 per cent.

In other words, the portfolio has grown from 6.16bn/- in 2011 to 32.15bn/- at December 2015 without a single extra investment, TICL prospectus shows.

ANALYSISBy David Ockwell, University of Sussex and Rob Byrne

Around the world, 1.1 billion people have no electricity and 2.9 billion can’t cook with“clean” energy. The international community has big aspirations to tackle this challenge, and its focus is on sustainable energy.

This involves providing poor women and men with affordable access to electricity for modern energy services like lighting and communications. The needs also extend to clean cooking options to mitigate the negative health effects of cooking with wood, charcoal, coal or animal waste. Many of these people live in remote locations with no access to electricity grids, or live within reach of the grid but cannot afford to connect. This has led to a focus on the potential of off-grid, renewable energy options.

A UN scheme – called the UN Sustainable Energy for All initiative – has set itself the goal of ensuring that everyone in the world has access to sustainable energy for all by 2030. This is a big ambition. Yet the international community still doesn’t understand enough about how to overcome the problem of energy access, and what’s needed to deliver it for everyone.

Two dimensions have dominated the debate: hardware and finance. We need technological hardware (for instance solar PV or wind turbines) and we need finance to pay for it. Much of the research on the problem has come from engineers and economists, informing policy agendas that respond to their concerns.

But there are three other dimensions that have been largely ignored in research and policy. These are culture, politics, and innovation. Looking at past successes in sustainable energy shows why they are crucial, and why ignoring them could lead to disappointment or failure.

Behind Kenya’s incredible success story

A key “transformational” example often referred to by international policy makers and researchers is the incredible success of the off-grid solar PV market in Kenya. This includes solar home systems, for which Kenya is estimated to have one of the largest per capita markets in the world. There’s also a rapidly expanding market for solar portable lanterns. It also includes the rapidly emerging phenomenon of pay as you go, mobile-enabled solar PV.

In our recent book, we have constructed the most detailed account to date of the history of the off-grid solar PV market in Kenya – drawing on a decade of empirical research, including over 100 hours of interviews and workshops in the country.

This market is often described – wrongly – as an “unsubsidised”, “free market success story” Supposedly, as the technological hardware emerged, it became cheap and reliable enough and, thanks to a lack of any government meddling, private sector entrepreneurs grew the market to what it is today.

Our research reveals a very different story, dating back several decades. Back then, a few early champions saw the opportunities for solar PV to provide energy access in Kenya.

Besides some shrewd political manoeuvring, these pioneers also had to understand the social and cultural reasons behind the ways that households, schools and hospitals consumed and paid for energy services. They also had to use the right language to persuade donors, obsessed with ‘fixing’ market failures, to support long-term capacity building.

This included market research, training for local technicians, installing demonstration solar home systems, helping vendors to understand systems and how to support customers.

The result was a thriving innovation system around solar PV. The early pioneers, who understood the importance not just of tech and finance, but also politics, culture and innovation, used these insights to build the foundations for the private sector growth we see today in Kenya. Lighting Africa, a later initiative, seems to have taken these political, social and cultural aspects seriously too, which has been material to its success in Kenya.

Now, another new form of energy access has built on these foundations: mobile payments for solar PV. This “pay as you go”model for solar electricity relies on the combination of two technologies: cheap Chinese solar PV and mobile banking. It has been held up as a transformational new technology and, on the surface, it looks like a mainly technical achievement.

Why culture and politics too

But when you dig down deeper, a better understanding begins to emerge of the early development of pay as you go solar PV models. You learn how much time these early innovators spent understanding the socio-cultural dimension of this issue.

People who are now CEOs of booming pay as you go solar companies spent years living with local people and developing in-depth knowledge of how culture, and even gender, affected how people paid for and consumed energy. To be successful at meeting people’s needs, they had to think through and experiment with how to structure these payments.

There are also clear political dimensions to the pay as you go solar PV phenomenon. For example, the UK’s Department for International Development was only able to help develop the M-Pesa mobile banking system in Kenya because of political relationships and the government’s willingness to work with donors around a “private sector entrepreneurship” agenda. But if mobile payments for solar PV began to look like a serious challenge to the central government’s investments, the Kenyan story might look very different.

Understanding these deeper aspects of innovation could help donors who are now looking to support Sustainable Energy for All. Of course, technology and finance are crucial to making it happen. But so are culture, politics and the broader sense in which innovation happens.

Disclosure statement

David Ockwell receives funding from HEFCE and ESRC and has received funding from the Climate Development Knowledge Network and DFID in the past. He is affiliated with the Low Carbon Energy for Development Network.

Rob Byrne receives funding from HEFCE and the ESRC. He has also received funding from the Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN). The funding provided by both the ESRC and CDKN supported the research underpinning this article. Rob is affiliated with the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, Low Carbon Energy for Development Network and Climate Strategies.

• 25% of staff at Africa’s leading financial institution rewarded
• CEO Kennedy Uzoka: “If we take care of our people, our people will take care of our customers.”

United Bank for Africa (UBA), Africa’s Global Bank operating in 19 African countries, has announced the promotion of 3,000 staff members, reinforcing its commitment to human capital investment and career progression, at the current challenging operating circumstances.  Promotions were made across UBA’s global network.

In a letter written on Monday, April 3 2017 to Group staff by CEO, Kennedy Uzoka.  “Since my recent appointment as GMD/CEO, one of my priorities has been to address the needs of our people.  I strongly believe that if we take care of our people, our people will take care of our customers – our ultimate employers.”

“Investment in our human capital is critical to our success.  It is a product of our ability to invest for the long term and create an institution that is built to last.  It is the bedrock of our determination to be Africa’s leading customer focused bank”.

In addition to the Group-wide promotion, Mr Uzoka unveiled a new Workforce Model and an extension of the existing Group car loan benefit, to 1000 previously ineligible staff.  These policies are in direct response to staff feedback from the Employee Engagement Survey, which the CEO says has helped define current and future human capital investment. The revised Workforce Model democratizes access to leadership roles and opportunities at the bank. All staff – regardless of track – can now aspire to leadership roles, if objective requirements are met.  Reforming the Leadership and Service Tracks disparity, which had been a source of frustration for some staff who had to convert tracks to advance professionally, illustrates again UBA’s commitment to creating an environment where talent and merit are rewarded.

Group Chairman, Tony Elumelu, congratulated UBA’s executive management, as he noted the current challenging business environment.  He encouraged the industry to follow UBA’s lead, in putting its workers first. “Promoting at this scale and creating career opportunities for staff at a time like this is an indication of industry leadership and worthy of emulation.  It is no accident that this is occurring after the announcement of our strong 2016 results and as our shareholders receive dividends later this week.  We want all our key stakeholders to share our success.” The Chairman continued in praise of the bank’s equitable policy, “I commend the bank for creating robust and meritocratic career opportunities for all staff at a time when some in our industry are downsizing or casualizing staff.  This is truly remarkable.”

UBA recently announced N384 billion earnings for 2016, an impressive 22% growth over performance in 2015 and also grew profit before tax by 32% to N91 billion.  The strong performance also reflects the imbedded culture of customer service, driven by high employee engagement and satisfaction.

UBA’s commitment to its broader pan-African network was reflected in a series of awards, including five ‘Bank of The Year’ awards for Gabon, Congo-Brazzaville, Senegal, Cameroon and Chad at the annual Bankers Award in London and the 2016 EMEA Finance Banking Awards by leading financial publication EMEA Finance Magazine.

Mr. Uzoka, ended his letter on an uplifting note, urging UBA employees – Lions and Lionesses – to “continue to embody UBA core values daily – in our endless quest for Excellent Service…Delivered!”  This advice is timely as staff enter the final stages of preparation for the Group Chairman’s Forum which commences on Wednesday April 5^th and features a series of events, including the Group AGM and the highly-anticipated annual UBA CEO Awards.  During the Forum, the Bank’s senior executives will share and learn from best practices across UBA’s 18 African subsidiaries and its operations in New York, Paris, and London, reflect on Group performance in the past year, and identify ways to enhance growth in the short, medium and long terms.