26th Kenya Homes Expo Opens in Nairobi

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26th Kenya Homes Expo Opens in Nairobi

Special Correspondent - April 12, 2018

The 26th edition of Kenya Homes Expo has kicked off at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre. This year’s edition is sponsored by Blue...

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Edelman Africa launched its Regional Advisory (ERA) team, comprised of senior industry veterans and communications advisors spread across North, East, West, Central and Southern Africa to assist existing and potential clients build their businesses and navigate the continent. This move, together with Edelman’s established network of vetted partners that span the entire African continent and offer on-the-ground tactical support across all 54 countries, positions Edelman Africa as the most connected communications advisory on the African continent and the leading provider of communications advisory across the regions. To build upon Edelman Africa’s already established teams in both Southern and East Africa, the regional advisory team will be co-led by two external advisors handpicked for their decades of experience across their respective regions: Kwame Senou, Executive Director of The Holding Opinion and Public (THOP) in Cote d’Ivoire and Kamal Taibi, Founder & CEO of Stratëus Group in Morocco. Increasing market volatility, institutional failures pushing people to the brink, and growing mistrust of leaders in government, business, and media. The 2025 Edelman Global Trust Barometer Data identified these symptoms as part of a crisis of grievance: a sense of unfairness and a lack of confidence in our institutions to improve our world, continent, and respective countries. For governments, multinational corporations and NGOs hoping to expand their presence into Africa, building trust will be crucial to offsetting this sense of grievance. “As our Trust research has shown, when institutions can’t be trusted to do what is right, levels of grievance arise. That’s why we must focus on increasing optimism, helping organisations cultivate and rebuild trust in local communities where they operate. This is especially true for those building their presence in Africa,” says Karena Crerar, CEO of Edelman Africa. “Multinational corporations and other institutions can no longer afford to be out of touch. Nuanced, regional strategies must be in place to reflect Africa’s complex socioeconomic environments. You can’t transplant multinational business and communication models into a given country and hope they’ll stick. You need a top-down understanding of every market,” she says. “This launch marks a significant step forward in how we support our clients’ ambitions across Africa. By bringing together deep regional expertise with the global reach of Edelman, we’re equipping institutions with the insight and guidance they need to navigate complex markets, earn trust, and drive impact at scale. It’s a strategic move that reflects both the growing importance of Africa in global growth plans and our commitment to being a trusted partner on that journey," says Justin Westcott, COO of Edelman EMEA. From public affairs influencing local policy to crisis communications, on-the-ground presence to regional analysis, this team will focus on not only tactical implementation in each country, but also strategic regional advisory for clientele operating in multiple African markets. “This is a pivotal moment, where our role is to navigate the complexities and deliver tailored solutions. West and Central Africa presents a dynamic landscape ripe with opportunities. Through this unique strategic alliance, we are well-positioned to support the ambitions of both global players and regional champions, driving meaningful impact across the region,” says Senou. North Africa also offers compelling prospects, says Taibi: “The region’s strategic location bridging Europe, the Middle East, and sub-Saharan Africa creates a hub for logistics and trade. Countries like Morocco and Egypt have become focal points for industries such as automotive manufacturing, energy transition, and agribusiness.” Organisations working with Edelman on the continent will receive ongoing, bespoke advice based on their current organisational strategy and market expansion plans. They will then work alongside the advisors in understanding all aspects of the market, region, neighbouring markets, and overall context. “Our advisors will then guide clientele on a strategic approach, going beyond Public Relations and tactical implementation, rather helping to tailor organisational goals into a regionally nuanced, culturally sensitive communications programme focusing on the stakeholders they want to reach. They will then work with our partner network across more than 50 African countries to implement these strategies and create the greatest possible positive impact for both the organisations and the communities in which they work,” says Crerar. The ERA Structure: Steering this advisory team will be Karena Crerar, Edelman Africa CEO, with the following advisors overseeing each region:  Kwame Senou, Executive Director, THOP, Cote d’Ivoire (West and Central Africa)  Kamal Taibi, Founder & CEO, Stratëus Group, Morocco (North Africa)  Corazon Sefu, Edelman Kenya Managing Director (East Africa Advisor)  Geraldine Mamburu, Edelman Africa Business Development Director (Southern Africa) Karena Crerar, Edelman Africa CEO, says: “As a leading communications consultancy in Africa, and a global leader in Trust, now is our moment to spearhead the African growth agenda for our industry, our people, and our clients – both on the continent and in international markets where interest in our dynamic continent remains high.” She continues: “We aim to advise our clients on the nuances of Africa through a country- specific, regional, and continent-wide lens, ensuring their communications create positive economic and social impact. This alongside access to the Edelman’s global capabilities, allowing us to design communication strategies for clients that drive meaningful change while fostering sustainable growth – helping us to push back against the crisis of grievance,” says Crerar.

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In the bustling Tushauriane area of Kayole, Embakasi, St. Patrick’s hospital is like an oasis in a desert. The level four hospital attends to thousands of patients in the densely populated Eastlands area. For the last 13 years, Ann Maina, the director and founder of the facility, has aspired to provide only the highest quality of care. Although the facility is widely known for its efficient services, it stands out when it comes to maternity care. From the onset, maternity care has always been dear to Mrs. Maina, a nurse. This was cemented into her heart after coming across debilitating and nerve-wracking experiences when she worked as a nurse in one of the local government hospitals. “The experience really left a bad taste in my mouth. I remember one time working in the maternity department, I witnessed nurses beating up an expectant mother in the delivery room. It was a heartbreaking moment for me and I really didn’t want to be part of that,” she recalls. Early in her career, she says she knew there was a way that mothers could deliver babies in a conducive environment, while receiving the best of care. “I felt that mothers should not suffer.” This prompted her to start a maternity home in her rented one-bedroom house, where she could afford mothers the best care she envisaged. For a start, she had a blood pressure monitoring machine, an examination bed and a drug cabinet. Her plan worked. Within a short time, more mothers visited her house, ready to deliver. “At one point, I had three expectant mothers coming to my house seeking assistance as they were ready for delivery. I handled them expertly. As others waited on the couch, I took in the first mother and she had a safe delivery. Within a short time, I ushered the rest into the delivery room and everything went well,” she shares. After making porridge for them, she discharged them after four hours. “Mothers need respect when giving birth. They need to be handled well.” With a vision, she realized that she was meeting a critical need in her society. Having tested the waters, she knew what needed to be done. “My patients needed to sleep on white sheets and pillows and once they have delivered, they need to be wheeled to their beds, be supported together with their babies, with lots of respect,” Naturally, expansion was in her mind, but there was a big problem; she had no money to expand. “I wanted to expand, but banks couldn’t give me money. Luckily, I had a Merry Go Round Chama that gave me some cash to expand.” Even with the cash injection from her Chama, she quickly found out that she couldn’t do more, especially when it comes to equipping a maternity unit. Seeing the potential of her dream, she decided to make a leap of faith and sold her house. With the proceeds, she then bought land and built structures at the current location. “I build the outpatients and the maternity section before the money ran out.” Despite the meager resources, Ann was motivated to keep going. At that point when she was starting out, she says she drew her motivation from the then president, Mwai Kibaki whose rallying call was to create over 500 000 jobs every year. “ I felt like the former president was talking to me directly, asking me to create jobs. With that I just went out and hired my first batch of professionals, including nurses, clinicians and doctors to help me run the show.” She remembers that the government of the day had made the business environment conducive, enabling businesses to make money. “Money became available to businesses through affordable bank loans”. What followed was a growth spurt that saw the business grow exponentially. Since its inception in 2012, St Patrick’s Hospital has become a household name in Kayole and environs. So phenomenal has been the growth that it has spawned a new branch. “As part of our expansion, we were able to buy land in Kenol, Muranga county and build and equip a fully fledged hospital, serving many people in the environs.” Mrs Maina attributes the hospitals' growth to sheer hard-work and determination. She appreciastes the fact that her husband joined and supported her to run the facility. “He could help from day one when I had to rush a patient to another facility in an ambulance. He was also instrumental in designing and building our facility.” Firstly, she says the hospital obtained favor from the locals, who patronized it. Secondly, the partnership with SafeCare, an international quality assurance and standards organization was a game changer. Once they joined SafeCare in 2012, Mrs Maina and her team were signed up for business and quality management training to improve their skills. The first step is assessment, which was an eye-opener for Mrs Maina. SafeCare found out that Ann and her team were not running the facility the right way. “We had no administration office, no systems. SafeCare helped them isolate the gaps and set in motion interventions in a bid to improve themselves. With this, they were able to streamline their record keeping, have audited accounts and a digitalized patient history. Next to identifying gaps, SafeCare provided St. Patrick’s hospital with practical tools, solutions and technical support, including access to finance. After the SafeCare intervention, Mrs Maina says her facility was able to obtain the first loan from Medical Credit Fund under the PharmAccess umbrella. It’s this experience that opened the doors for her to get credit from other institutions. She says that the impact of SafeCare was felt almost instantaneously. Shortly afterward, her facility was able to attract all the big insurers, as well as NHIF, a move that brought in many patients. “When the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) used to visit us for an evaluation, we never knew what they were looking for, and we didn’t know how to improve. After we started SafeCare and the NHIF visited us again, it was a whole new story’’. St. Patrick became NHIF accredited, ensuring a bigger client and income flow. Patient visits have risen from almost 600 to more than 2000 a month, especially now that they have also managed to contract corporate clients and private medical insurance companies. There’s no doubt that SafeCare has helped Ann to reposition her facility and increase its market value. Safecare also helped Ann and her team to mitigate risks in the workplace, especially by embracing handwashing and separating waste in color-coded bins. For Ann, running the hospital is not just a passionate endeavor, but one that should impact society. This explains why her facility hosts health campaigns to educate the community about hygiene. Safecare has certified the facility as a Level 4 but Mrs Maina is eager to go for the highest certification as well as be ISO-certified. “We have come a long way, and we are going far. Our aim now is to continue offering the highest quality of care to all patients, with dignity and respect.”

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26th Kenya Homes Expo Opens in Nairobi

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