Posts by Joseph Baraza:
University Student Abducted Alongside Nation Reporter Found Dead
September 5th, 2018
The second year medical student at Rongo University Sharon Otieno who was abducted alongside Migori based Nation Reporter Barack Oduor has been found murdered and her body dumped in Kodera forest in Homabay.
Ruto Finances IPSOS Corruption Surver To Cover His Graft Tracks
August 25th, 2018
The Deputy President William Ruto financed the IPSOS recent survey on corruption to deliberately play political games with the minds of Kenyans knowing that he may not escape the noose of corruption that is slowly tightening around his neck, Angaza News can authoritatively report.
A Million Kenyans Pushed Annually To Poverty Due To Health Expenses
April 20th, 2018
Almost one million Kenyans are pushed to poverty every year as a result of healthcare expenses therefore the Universal health coverage is a fundamental human rights issue, said the health cabinet secretary Sicily Kariuki.
Ms. Kariuki said: “Impoverishing health expenditures as a result of high rates of out-of-pocket expenses is a factor of inequality of access to healthcare.”
She said that four out of every five Kenyans have no access to medical insurance and that among the poorest quintile only 3% have health insurance with disparities between rural and urban populations, where rates of coverage are an average of 12% and 27% respectively.
The cabinet secretary was officially opening the Kenya Health Forum (KHF) conference at a Nairobi hotel attended by health stakeholders from all over the country, the East African region and the international community.
“All this coupled with the fact that 33.6% of Kenyans survive on less than two US dollars per day means that there are still millions who cannot access quality healthcare,” she told the conference.
Ms. Kariuki said the Government has prioritized attainment of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) to reduce the expenditure burden that a majority of Kenyans incur while seeking healthcare. The Universal Health Care Goal aims at cushioning citizens against out of pocket expenditure on health services.
She said that the Government healthcare financing and social health protection approach such as the elimination of user fees, Linda Mama, subsidies for the poor and Health Insurance Subsidy Programmes have been successful.
The CS said: “These government initiatives combined with the efforts of development partners, the private sector and other key stakeholders have seen Kenya register significant progress in terms of health outcomes such as reduction of maternal and infant mortality and increase in the use of contraceptives.”
The CS called upon stakeholders to increase their investments in healthcare and also commended the county governments for progressively increasing their allocations to health services, from about 13 per cent of the total County Government budget in fiscal year 2013/14, to 25 per cent in the current year 2017/18. “This is laudable effort from the counties and we encourage more counties to continue to increase their allocations to health,” she added.
Ms. Kariuki said her ministry will work together with the County Governments to improve service delivery with a focus on increasing access to affordable and quality healthcare services and thanked the World Health Organization for continued support to the Ministry.
The conference declared that the health sector requires more than Kshs. 120 billion annual investments to achieve the government’s ambitious Universal Health Coverage (UHC) programme for every Kenyan.
Mumias Sugar in Dire Need of Kshs. 5 Billion
March 28th, 2018
The troubled giant Mumias Sugar Company (MSC) is desperately in need of Kshs. 5 billion to stay afloat as brokers and opportunists go on rampage to flood the local sugar market with crippling tonnages of cheap imports.
According to sources from the company’s board of directors the company immediately needs Kshs. 2 billion to deal with the immediate financial challenges it is facing, but the balance to be staggered over the next five years.
A senior director who declined to be named said: “Let the government and Kenyans not be cheated that this company is no longer viable after the financial challenges it has gone through. Now we need this money to steer us to where we want.
OPINION: Uhuru-Raila Meeting A Surprise That Must Bear Fruits
March 13th, 2018
Though the opposition, the religious fraternity, the business community and investors, stakeholders, the diplomatic community and the international community have for months been pressing for dialogue between President Uhuru Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga when it came it was the biggest surprise of the year.
OPINION: Corruption And The Making of The Kenyan State.
March 11th, 2018
Ever wondered why corruption is such a core and almost undefeated aspect of the Kenyan society? This is how it works, world over. Every country has a personality; a sense of national self-conceptualization based on the core beliefs of the founders and the events surrounding its origins.
It’s not a mistake that Rome drove politics and jurisprudence, Greece was famed for philosophy, America goes to war every 10-15yrs, Britain obsesses about its Victorian morality and social ideals. In short, every nation has its founding ideals and flaws that flow through the generations.
The downside to this reality is that negative values also sneak in. For example racism is not just a nasty reality in the US, it was a pervasive ideal among the white pioneer elites; therefore it’s a core founding value of the American largely white state.
KQ To Make History With 1st Daily Direct Flights To USA
March 9th, 2018
Kenya Airways is making history with plans at an advanced level to start making for the first time direct daily long flights from Nairobi to the United States of America (USA).
The much awaited for, dreamed of and talked about possibility is at long last becoming a reality that will enable travelers from Kenya to the United States or from there to here travel direct without having to make over stop overs especially in European capitals before proceeding across the Atlantic to the States.
This is happening because Kenya Airways has already started ticket sales for its already planned non-stop daily flights to New York in the United States America unlike any other airline on the African continent.
Farmers Pile Pressure To Implement Sugar Industry Crisis Report
March 9th, 2018
Sugarcane farmers from western Kenya have filed a petition to parliament pressurizing for the implementation of the Parliamentary Report on the crisis facing the sugar industry released by the eleventh Parliament.
The farmers are arguing that implementation of the recommendations of the report will save them from total financial ruin since they completely depended on sugarcane cash crop as their economic lifeline.
They argue that this will also save the sugar industry in the country from collapse with devastating consequences to millions of people from the western Kenya region who depended on the industry either directly or indirectly.
The petition was filed with the Clerk of the National Assembly on behalf of the farmers by the chairman Western Development Initiative Association (WEDIA), Joseph Barasa this week after a prolonged silence since the release of the parliamentary report.
Mr. Barasa said: “We wish to once again kindly request you to expedite for speedy action on the above mentioned matter which was passed by the 11th Parliament presided over by you but has to date remained moribund without any action.”
Two East African Heads Of State Launch Busia’s One Stop Border Post
March 3rd, 2018
At long last the multi-billion shillings One Stop Border Post (OSBP) facilities financed by the World Bank were officially opened and services launched by Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni.
The OSBP facilities which have drastically changed the face of the Kenya – Uganda border entry and exit points have also virtually revolutionized the way of doing mass heavy duty cargo business across the border – particularly import export trade.
Though the big fish involved in doing this business may be laughing all the way to the bank considering the money and time they are saving, many others are being rendered jobless with their incomes consigned to oblivion.
EXCLUSIVE: West Kenya Importing Sub-standard Sugar
October 25th, 2017
West Kenya Sugar Company in collaboration with powerful politicians in government are flooding the country with imported duty free sub-standard sugar in total disregard of standing high court orders banning the same.
