RADISSON BLU HOTEL, NAIROBI UPPER HILL OFFICIALLY OPENED

Investor and property developer Micheal Kairu hands over a symbolic key to Rezidor President Wolfgang Neumann and General Manager Jens Brandin

Radisson Blu Nairobi Upper Hill was officially opened on Friday, January 22, 2016 by the Rezidor Hotel Group President and CEO Mr Wolfgang Neumann.

”We are delighted to be in Nairobi, Kenya. It is one of the markets we have had our sights set on for some time and I would like to thank our partners for their trust in us. This opening further strengthens our leading position in Africa as we look forward to growing the brand across the region, including Kenya where we have two others in the pipeline,” said Wolfgang M Neumann President & CEO of Rezidor.

The Rezidor Hotel Group has one of the largest pipeline of hotels and rooms under development by any international hotel operator on the continent. Earlier in the year it announced plans to open a second property in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with at least two others lined up in Kenya in the near future. The Group is also looking to set up in Uganda, South Sudan and Rwanda in the near future.
 Guests staying at the hotel have a choice of three contemporary room designs from the sleek Urban Room style to the New York Mansion or the Naturally Cool themes with views over the Nairobi city skyline or the Nairobi National Park.

Radisson Blu Hotel, Nairobi Upper Hill, boasts a number of signature dining concepts allowing guests to experience the tastes and traditions of Kenya within the comfort of the hotel. The Chop House provides a holistic dining experience that highlights modern African cuisine while The Larder offers all-day dining serving local favourites as well as international dishes with an African twist.

The property offers one of the best equipped and largest conference facilities with 14 meeting rooms as well as a spacious 590-square-metre ballroom for a reception, gala or other special occasion.

“The hotel is a modern salute to Radisson Blu’s design heritage and innovative spirit, and Kenya’s vibrant culture. Our global travellers can continue to expect the very best of Radisson Blu stylish, sophisticated and iconic experience in Kenya’s capital city,” said Marc Descrozaille, Area Vice President Sub-Saharan Africa for The Rezidor Hotel Group.

The Rezidor Hotel Group has an extensive Responsible Business Programme, launched in January 2012 with a target to reduce energy consumption across the whole business by 25% in five years. One of the initiatives under the programme is ’Think Planet’ under which the Group has planted over 140,000 trees in Limuru, where Neumann will visit. The initiative empowers the local community and reduces the company’s environmental footprint. Each tree offsets one tonne of carbon.

”We believe in minimising our environmental footprint and taking care of the health and safety of guests. We have a target to reduce our energy consumption by 25% and are on course to achieve this. The project in Limuru is just one of the many projects we have globally,” said Neumann. Neumann will also visit the SOS Village, an initiative he is passonate about having climbed Mt Kilimanjaro in 2014 to raise funds for house No. 15.

Emerging Technologies at Consumer Electronics Show

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) – or drones as they are more commonly known – had a disruptive effect in the recently held  Consumer Electronics Show this year with many new vendors entering the market, including many low-price players from the market.
Drones targeted at consumers are still in their infancy, and there could be a greater emphasis placed on the aesthetics of drones as well as using artificial intelligence to deliver better performance and more features. For drones to achieve more mainstream success they need to demonstrate use beyond photography and video, as well as navigate regional regulatory issues.
There have been robots of one type or another at Consumer Electronics Show for years and their capabilities are increasing every year. The potential of robots has been recognized for decades, and devices on display at CES are finally starting to reach these lofty standards. Robots at CES range from the promising to the absurd, but each passing year sees the intiuative technology move closer and closer to the mainstream.
While most consumers are familiar with these wearables, in ear smart technology known as hearables are set to enter the public consciousness for the first time at CES. Smart ear buds such as the Bragi Dash contain biometric trackers, ambient noise filtering and a consumer centric control interface. These smart headphones represent the first viable audio focused wearable technology, and they certainly won’t be the last
Another key product will be OLED TV. LG decided to venture into OLED technology not too long ago. This is despite the numerous misconceptions about the technology by other companies. Now LG’s investments are ready to pay off as they increase their production capacity for its OLED TVs, while other companies are still using the RGB OLED which they are struggling to get viable yield levels for the technology to go mainstream.
CES 2016 has ushered in the era of the sub-2000 USD OLED TV, a huge step forward for the responsive technology and its primary champion. With OLED coming closer and closer to competing on price with LCD making it more consumer centric , there is genuine cause for excitement among OLED supporters going in to CES.
The competition in OLED technology is bound to move up a notch in 2016 with LG debuting a new OLED bendable 55 inch television set which will be able to use wire batteries thus allowing it to be flat and portable. This allows the consumer to be able to roll it up and carry it around. With these new innovative and futuristic new products LG is undoubtedly trendsetting in producing revolutionary products in 2016 and years to come.

Wrigley sponsors 2016 Nairobi Restaurant Week

 Head of Corporate Affairs Wrigley Company (EA) Wanja Mwangi whips up a meal as instructed by Hector Boo Sanchez, Head Chef Brew Bistro Woodvale Grove during the recent press launch of the 2016 Nairobi Restaurant Week.
 

Nairobi’s culinary scene is once again set to tantalize residents as this year’s edition of the Nairobi Restaurant week is set to take place between 28th January and 07th February 2016.
As some of Nairobi’s finest food connoisseurs will meet to offer diners an exemplary dining experience, the Wrigley Company - the world’s leading manufacturer and marketer of gum, through its East Africa subsidiary has partnered with the organizers to enlighten participants about oral care practices on-the-go.
“Our oral care brand falls right at the heart of the Nairobi Restaurant Week. We are glad to be part of it and hope that our partnership with EatOut will go a long way in enlightening participants about oral care practices on-the-go,” said Wrigley East Africa Corporate Affairs Head Wanja Mwangi.
Nairobi Restaurant is a celebration of the city’s colourful culinary scene. It brings together over 50 sit-down restaurants across the city offering dazzling food and sparkling service for a one-week period.
The roaring success of the inaugural Nairobi Restaurant Week in January 2014 which was extended to two weeks due to demand is a testament to the growing dining culture in Nairobi.
In major cities around the world, Restaurant week has been a proven tradition and has registered success in the country as well.
“We are essentially seeking to create healthy habits and reaching consumers through our oral care brand; Orbit. Through our Eat Drink Chew campaign, we believe in educating consumers on the benefits of sugar free gum such as its ability to wash away food debris and remineralize tooth enamel to help strengthen teeth,” added Ms Mwangi.
Wrigley has been championing the oral health agenda in Kenya notably the recent commissioning and release of the first ever national oral health survey through the Ministry of Health and The University of Nairobi in November last year.
The survey was carried out to ascertain the burden of select oral diseases, oral health seeking behavior, determinants of oral health, risk factors, as well as the implication on oral health related quality of life.  The resultant findings will be useful in planning oral health care delivery in Kenya.

The company partners with dental professionals, supports scientific research and collaborates with governments, organizations and corporate partners to make a difference to oral health worldwide.

Lifestyle and Food Bloggers at the #NRW2016 Media Launch

Unmanned aerial vehicles, a hot button issue as of late

Last week while watching behind the scenes video of one of East Africans most coveted male artists Diamond Platnumz, I remember the excitement we had on noticing the different audio visual equipment employed into making  the new hit Unanipenda a success.

I must admit that amidst all the watching and ogling at the beautiful couple and their nearly six months old baby girl Princess Tiffah -who is already an internet sensation in the region- one thing  that caught all our eyes were the unmanned aerial vehicles(UAVs) in the shoot.

For most Kenyan’s, especially the ones that attend outdoor social parties, these are now common and mostly referred to as drones. There is something about this technology that tells me that in near future, it is going to be the next big thing as it mutates into intuitive technology with more features and better performance. This was seen in the recently held Consumer Electronic Show (CES)held in Las Vegas this month, where drones had a disruptive effect with many new vendors entering the market, including many low-price players from the global market.

Although critics have raised concerns about performance of UAVs saying they should be able to demonstrate use beyond photography and videography, there has been instances when UAVs have proved that they are efficient. Drones have been pressed into service to help event organizers and police in crowd management, traffic management on the highways and traffic regulation on the normally congested areas aside from parking management during big functions or just during normal days.

In 2016 and beyond, it will be key for electronic companies to look into designing high-confidence unmanned automated systems that are consumer-centric. National and international organizations, agencies, industry, military and civilian authorities are working towards defining roadmaps of UAVs expectations, technical requirements and standards that are prerequisite to their full utilization, as well as legal, policy and ethical issues. The next generation of UAVs is expected to be used for a wide spectrum of civilian and public domain applications. Challenges to be faced and overcome include, among others, challenges related to policies, procedures, regulations, safety, risk analysis assessment, airworthiness, operational constraints, standardization and frequency management, all of paramount importance, which, coupled with smart technology, 'environmentally friendly' cutting edge responsive technology  which will pave the way towards full integration of UAVs with manned innovative compatibility  into the respective usage airspace.

With so  much   to  focus  on, electronics companies in Kenya especially the ones that exhibited at CES like LG Electronics, must  capitalize  on  its  reputation  for consumer-centric  innovation  and  contrast  itself  from  companies  that  innovate  merely  for  the sake  of  producing  something  new .This  is  an  important  distinction  to  make  because  innovation succeeds  when  it  connects  with users enhanced  operational convenience. LG has introduced many innovative gadgets and appliances in the Kenyan market that are transformative and meet these requirements. As they say, if history is something to go by, it goes without mentioning that their unmanned automated vehicle will be one of the superior systems in the market.

Here at the office, we all can’t wait to buy our first drone from LG Electronics that we will use to observe people at the many parties that we attend. We are very much excited to watch this new trend grow!

30 million SMS campaign

The Ministry of Tourism has launched a Kshs 30 million SMS campaign to woo in domestic travelers as part of its recovery strategy.

At the same time, the government will soon be unveiling a collaborative strategy on tourism promotion with the county governments to enhance tourism product diversity in the country.

Speaking during the SMS campaign launch in Mombasa, Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala said marketing of country’s products has to be holistic with collaboration from the private sector and the county governments.

Balala pointed out that counties under North Rift Economic Bloc (NOREB) and Jumuia ya Pwani have tourism promotion opportunities and will be the first entry to ministry’s engagement with the county governments.

He said the SMS campaign will have a direct impact on domestic tourist numbers as it supports the ongoing efforts to position the country’s tourist attractions to the local audience.

Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) Managing Director Muriithi Ndegwa said the eight-week campaign will see couples and individuals win prizes during the campaign which will include two nights and three days to various attractions.

He said there will be a grand prize for two people for five nights with a flying package either to Maasai Mara or Samburu. To register for the competition, one will be required to send his or her name to 21888.

The CS said the campaign will add impetus to the ongoing Tembea Kenya Campaign seeking to encourage more Kenyans to tour their country and sample its diverse tourism attractions.

He added that already a tender on further promotional campaigns to targeting the domestic market floated out for the bidders to send through their concepts.

Domestic tourism, he pointed out, has been on a steady growth with bed nights occupancy recording about 46% percent up from 41% in the past years.

“This is indicative of the fact that the sub-sector has the potential for further growth and therefore a cushion to the industry especially during hard times” he noted.

He called on the hotels to offer affordable packages to the local market as a cushion during low season.

At the same time, Balala thanked President Uhuru Kenyatta for his directive on visa fee waiver for children below 16 years and the capping of park fee at 60 USD.

“These, including the Kshs 1.2 billion charter incentive are major boost to the tourism sector and that is why I have called on the private sector to give full support to the implementation of the process,” said the Cabinet Secretary.

He disclosed that he has already initiated discussion with Narok county government for the review of their park fee in the light of the upcoming review by Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) owned parks.

For more information contact communications@ktb.go.ke