East African Business Notifier

  The WMO Hurricane Committee has retired the names Beryl, Helene and Milton from its Atlantic basin name list and John from the eastern Pacific basin name list because of the death and destruction these storms caused in 2024. Hurricane Beryl was the earliest Atlantic basin Category-5 hurricane on record, with major impacts in the Caribbean. Hurricanes Helene and Milton caused catastrophic damage in the United States. Hurricane John triggered deadly and extended flooding in the Mexican state of Guerrero. The names Brianna, Holly and Miguel were selected as replacements in the Atlantic basin and Jake in the eastern Pacific. The  lists of names, which are overseen by WMO , help in the communication of storm warnings and to alert people about potentially life-threatening risks.  The names are repeated every six years, unless a storm is so deadly that its name is retired. The naming convention – whilst attracting the most public attention – is only a small part of the life-sa...

Airtel Uganda launched its 2025 nationwide Iftar campaign to celebrate the spirit of Ramadhan by supporting Muslim communities across the country.  The month-long initiative will see Airtel host Iftar dinners across nine regions of Uganda, namely: Kampala, Mbale, Gulu, Kabale, Luwero, Jinja, Fort Portal, Masaka & Arua,  bringing the holy month celebrations closer to the communities it serves. The campaign, which reinforces Airtel's commitment to community engagement, will feature bi-weekly Iftar dinners throughout the month of Ramadhan, with each event hosting 150 guests including senior religious leaders from the respective regions. Speaking at the launch, Airtel Uganda’s Sales & Distribution Director, Ali Balunywa highlighted the essence of this holy period. He said, “Every year, the holy month of Ramadhan reminds us of the values of faith, gratitude, and community.  "It is a time of reflection, generosity, and coming together to share in the blessings of Iftar....

By Adons Aryong  There was a time when snaking queues outside banks was a normal sight at the beginning of the school term.   In one bank, so as not to inconvenience the other clients, they dedicated space in the basement parking area to handle school fees payers. Woe onto you if you were not ready and seated at 7 am, you would be assured of many hours of waiting to pay.  In order to speed the process along you filled in fees slips, made sure your money was in the correct denominations, and was the exact amount, including the sh2000 banking fees. When you paid you left a slip with the bank, you took another to school, and you kept one for yourself.  How times have changed.   In a trend we at Post Bank are experiencing daily and is mirrored around the industry, we have seen school fees payments over the counter collapsing from up to 80 percent to just about 20 percent in the just concluded school fees payment cycle.  People are now using our mobile and ...

Huawei Technologies Uganda has announced the successful completion of the Digital Skills Training program through its innovative DigiTruck corporate social responsibility activity.  At the graduation ceremony, a total of 851, 493 (58%) male and 358 (42%) female market vendors graduated from the Digital Skilling initiative spearheaded by the Ministry of ICT & National Guidance in collaboration with the National ICT Innovation Hub, MTN Uganda Foundation,   Centenary Technology Services (Cente-Tech), and the Uganda Institute of Information and Communications Technology (UICT) to bridge the digital divide gap and leaving no one behind. The graduation ceremony, held on 12 th  March at the UICT National Innovation Hub, marked a significant milestone in empowering small business owners and market vendors across the Kamwokya Community Centre, Kamwokya Market, Kamwokya Mosque, Kitintale Market, Port Bell Market, and Usafi Market. with essential digital skills to thrive in the ...

By Desmond Lachman WASHINGTON, DC – At the first cabinet meeting of his second term, US President Donald Trump declared  his intention to impose a sweeping 25% tariff on all imports from the European Union.  But before opening a European front in his trade war, Trump might want to consider the continent’s economic malaise: the German economy has been experiencing a prolonged downturn , while Italy and France are struggling with serious public-debt problems. Maybe then Trump will grasp that his tariff actions – part of his “America First” agenda – risk triggering a European-wide recession and another eurozone debt crisis. Some might argue that Trump has no interest in Europe’s fate. But given how badly the 2010 Greek debt implosion shook US and world financial markets, similar crises in France and Italy, the European Union’s second- and third-largest economies (and many times the size of Greece’s), would have truly catastrophic consequences for markets and the global economy. T...

Anu Madgavkar, Marc Canal Noguer NEWARK/BARCELONA – The effects of falling birth rates and rising life expectancy are increasingly evident in advanced economies like Germany, Italy, and Japan. Labor markets are tightening, worker shortages are worsening, and families are struggling to find care for aging parents. In some areas, declining student numbers are forcing schools to  shut down . South Korea offers a stark example. In 2023, as the country’s total fertility rate plummeted to  just 0.7 children per woman  of childbearing age over a lifetime, sales of dog strollers  surpassed  those of baby strollers. But population aging is not limited to advanced economies. Within a generation or two, many emerging economies will likely face the same demographic problems plaguing their developed-country counterparts – without the financial resources needed to cushion the blow. In a new McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) report, we  divide  these demographic shifts...