Infobytes

Populations and development are intricately linked when it comes to the progress a country makes. Take Kenya for instance, in 1950, the population was around six million. By independence in 1963, the number had grown to around 8.6 million. Some 60 years later in 2023, the number stood at about 52 million. That’s massive growth, and there is nothing wrong with it if resources grow at a similar rate. But they usually don’t. So, as the population rises, the government is finding it challenging to take care of the huge numbers with the limited resources collected. This calls for careful planning. The National Council for Population and Development (NCPD) is tasked with managing Kenya’s population growth and trends Find out more about NCPD and their new plan.

It is an undeniable fact that Kenya faces a wage bill crisis, with the country spending about Sh1.1 trillion annually of the Sh2.2 trillion it collects as revenue to pay salaries of about a million public sector workers. President William Ruto notes this trend is unsustainable as the higher wage bill is crowding out funds for development and other needs. In this edition of InfoBytes, we explain to you the wage bill crisis and the steps the government is taking to contain it.

In this edition of InfoBytes, we tell you how to stay safe this rainy season, including by looking out for flash floods, avoiding driving or walking in flooded areas and keeping off sections where electricity lines are loose or the posts have fallen.

As digital transformation gathers pace in different African countries, the development of digital identity systems has become paramount for governments. The digital IDs are the major pillars for the effective and efficient ways for governments to provide services to their citizens and businesses to verify the identity of their customers. The main benefits of the IDs are financial inclusion, enhanced access to services, improved security, increased digital trade and entrepreneurship and effective emergency responses. However, the digital ID systems raise serious concerns regarding privacy, data security and inclusion as delegates at the Network of African Data Protection Authorities (NADPARAPDP) observed. To ensure digital IDs work better and build trust among the populace are the Data Protection Authorities (DPA).

The ninth Network of African Data Protection Authorities (NADPA/RAPDP) Annual General Meeting is underway in Nairobi, with various dignitaries and participants calling for increased data sharing between countries. The cross-border data sharing, participants noted, would facilitate the growth of the digital economy and accelerate ongoing digital transformation. In this edition of InfoBytes, we tell you what key speakers said on the first day of the event.

Kenya hosts the ninth Network of African Data Protection Authorities (NADPA) Annual General Meeting between the 7th and 9th of May, 2024.The conference provides a unique platform to highlight challenges and showcase opportunities presented in Africa’s digital journey through the enhancement of data protection.

President William Ruto on Monday called for increased connectivity between African countries to hasten the continent’s digital transformation. President Ruto, who was speaking as he opened ICT-sector premier forum Connected Africa Summit 2024 in Nairobi, said the event inaugurates Africa’s digital transformation.

The health sector is one of the key pillars under the government’s Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA). In the sector, President William Ruto seeks to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC), where all citizens have access to quality health services when and where they need them without suffering financial hardship.