Why Kenya is Not Safe From the Middle East Conflicts

By Chelsy Maina

With the dust settling after recent missile exchanges between Iran and Israel and U.S. military activity simmering rather than escalating, Kenya is watching the unfolding tensions with cautious concern- not only for their impact on global oil prices and trade, but also for the broader implications on its own national and regional security.

• While the Middle East conflict may seem far removed, it has increasingly casting a long shadow over East Africa, reigniting fears of regional instability and terrorism.

• The recent strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities and retaliatory attacks on energy infrastructure, including gas-processing plants and fuel depots- have inflamed a broader proxy war that stretches well beyond the borders of Israel or Iran.

• Already, the Strait of Hormuz, through which nearly 20% of the world’s oil flows, faces disruption threats, and regional actors aligned with Iran, such as the Houthis in Yemen, are stepping up hostilities. It is this growing influence of Iranian-linked proxy groups that raises red flags for Kenya’s security apparatus.

“Kenya suffers from a myriad of legal and criminal problems developing over time from its generalized administrative disarray and well-known environment of impunity. Its security forces are poorly organized, trained, paid, or commanded. Personnel are either haphazardly deployed or tied down maintaining law and order,” counterterrorism expert Andrew Franklin notes.

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In the News

🧠 Craft Silicon Pilots AI Chatbot for Kenya’s Banking System

By Fred Obura

Tech company Craft Silicon is piloting a generative artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot linked to banking core systems able to answer different financial related queries in both English and local languages. Known as Small Talk, the Craft Silicon AI will be take questions from users once they are logged on mobile banking apps, giving responses on account balances, saving tips and any other related financial concerns. Chatbots have changed how human being interact with technology and how various industries operate. Read More

🚀 Safaricom’s Revenue Streams Have Evolved

By Harry Njuguna

Over the past decade, telco giant Safaricom has undergone a shift in its revenue model, transitioning from a voice-centric telco to a data and mobile money-driven tech company. In its early years, particularly around 2012, Safaricom’s revenue model was heavily anchored in voice services. Today? MPESA and mobile data are doing the heavy lifting, a telling indicator that growth is powered not by airtime sales, but by financial transactions, data consumption, and platform innovation. Read More.

🍷 South African Winemakers are Seducing Nairobi’s Middle Class

By Brian Nzomo

For decades, beer has held the throne and whiskey ran its course. Meanwhile, wine has lingered in the shadows, always ignored in restaurant and bar menus. But this is likely to change as wine producers are juicing up their brands in Nairobi. Read more…

Analysis

On your watchlist

Is Kenya’s real estate sector still worth investing in? In this episode of Investing Like an Executive, Andrew Barden, CEO of the Kenyan Wall Street, sits down with Ian Henderson — Founder and Managing Director of Superior Homes Kenya

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