Needless to say, Tanzania’s commercial capital and largest city, Dar es Salaam, has not been spared.
It has been the norm for several years now for unscrupulous Dar es Salaam residents to allocate themselves plots on land that is seemingly ownerless, but which, in fact, has its rightful owners, who, in most cases, emerge and produce the relevant documents as proof of ownership.
This has especially been taking place on the city’s outskirts, where land is still readily available.
It has been claimed that most of the land that has essentially been grabbed in Dar es Salaam and elsewhere in recent years was idle, and that this justifies its takeover by fraudsters and con artistes pretending to be poor, landless people.
Some of the land in question has been reclaimed by their rightful owners, but others have found themselves embroiled in protracted legal battles.
Since no decisive action has been taken to stem these unlawful acts, this will only serve to breed a culture of impunity whereby people have little or no respect for the rule of law.
While it is true that there are questions hanging over the dubious allocation of huge swathes of land to investors and other individuals in various parts of the country, allowing people to take over private or public land and carve it up among themselves sets a dangerous precedent.
In almost all cases, people who are the first to allocate themselves plots quickly sell them to others, mostly unsuspecting or ignorant buyers.
This is testimony to the fact that this is a fraud where swindlers have seen an opportunity to pull a fast one and make a quick buck.
It is time the relevant agencies stepped in and ended this madness, lest they are seen to be abetting criminal conspiracy and blatant disregard for the law.
Stop these fabricated stories
Reports of Tanzanians seeking asylum in Western countries are not entirely surprising. What is surprising is the extent to which some of them go to persuade the authorities in those countries to grant them asylum.
One was quoted by Australian media saying he feared he would be killed if he returned to Tanzania, where he had received death threats for his work with people living with HIV and albino children.
Whichever way one looks at this explanation, the inevitable conclusion is that it is a tall story that should be taken with a grain of salt. Unfortunately, many economic migrants from Tanzania and other parts of Africa resort to scarcely believable horror tales when seeking asylum and a supposedly better life in the West.
There are reports of young Tanzanian women having been given asylum in Western countries after claiming to have escaped female genital mutilation back home. While Tanzania may not be the richest country in the world, it is far from being a hellhole as some asylum seekers would like the world to believe.
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Britam half-year net profit hits Sh2bn on higher investment income
Insurer and financial services provider Britam posted a 22.5 percent jump in net earnings for the half-year ended June 2024, to Sh2 billion, buoyed by increased investment income.
The rise in half-year net profit from Sh1.64 billion posted in a similar period last year came on the back of net investment income rising 2.5 times to Sh13.27 billion from Sh5.3 billion.
“We are confident in the growth and performance trend that Britam has achieved, supported by its subsidiaries in Kenya and the region. Our business is expanding its revenue base while effectively managing costs,” Britam Chief Executive Officer Tom Gitogo said.
“Our customer-centric approach is fueling growth in our customer base and product uptake, particularly through micro-insurance, partnerships, and digital channels.”
The investment income growth was fueled by interest and dividend income rising 34 percent to Sh9.1 billion, which the insurer attributed to growth in revenue and the gains from the realignment of the group’s investment portfolio.
Britam also booked a Sh3.79 billion gain on financial assets at a fair value, compared with a Sh1.8 billion loss posted in a similar period last year.
The increased investment income helped offset the 12.7 percent decline in net insurance service result to Sh2.13 billion in the wake of claims paid out rising at a faster pace than that of premiums received.
Britam said insurance revenue, which is money from written premiums, increased to Sh17.8 billion from Sh16.6 billion, primarily driven by growth in the Kenya insurance business and regional general insurance businesses, which contributed 30 percent of the revenue.
The group has a presence in seven countries in Africa namely Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Sudan, Mozambique, and Malawi.
Britam’s insurance service expense hit Sh13.6 billion from Sh11.3 billion, while net insurance finance expenses rose 2.6 times to Sh12.3 billion during the same period.
“Net insurance finance expenses increased mainly due to growth in interest cost for the deposit administration business driven by better investment performance. This has also been impacted by a decline in the yield curve, which has led to an increase in the insurance contract liabilities. The increase has been offset by a matching increase in fair value gain on assets,” said Britam.
Britam’s growth in profit is in line with that of other Nairobi Securities Exchange-listed insurers, which have seen a rise in profits.
Jubilee Holdings net profit in the six months increased by 22.7 percent to Sh2.5 billion on increased income from insurance, helping the insurer maintain Sh2 per share interim dividend.
CIC Insurance Group posted a 0.64 percent rise in net profit to Sh709.99 million in the same period as net earnings of Liberty Kenya nearly tripled to Sh632 million from Sh213 million, while Sanlam Kenya emerged from a loss to post a Sh282.2 million net profit.
