the twelve million Kenyans in the informal sector .
Mobile Money
The high penetration of Mobile Network Operators ( MNOs ) and mobile money have distorted traditional social fabric ; for example since one can get small instant loans on their cellphone , membership in merry-go-rounds and other social groupings has been declining .
Ladies in upcountry with husbands in the cities have been complaining about the husband making fewer trips to their village homes . This is mainly because while in the past they would create small ‘ crisis ’ to make the men to go to the rural homes , such ‘ crisis ’ are now solved by sending money . The main concern is that they might lose their husbands to city girls and concubines .
‘ Lifestyle-Sponsorship ’
There is a new trend in Nairobi where it has become acceptable for ladies to have a male partner whose main role is to finance her lifestyle . This has been popularized by morning talk shows on radio glamourizing this kind of arrangement . A ‘ sponsor ’ is usually an older man who is happily married and affluent but they want a thrill of a side kick and the ‘ sponsee ’ is younger and full of life .
Referring to the earlier trend of women rising , there are emerging cases of successful women being sponsors to young boys ( Ben-10s ).
In last column we saw how the
Kenyan companies are responding to this growing market segment of sponsor-stituition with Kenya Breweries launching the first Kenyan Cider Tusker Cider that seems to target sponsors for their sponsees . Tusker is Kenya ’ s most popular beer especially among sponsors while the new addition is targeted at those who prefer better tasting drinks and hence will appeal
‘‘ Sports ’ betting has become a big trend in Kenya . The dream of becoming an overnight millionaire has led to a euphoric betting craze especially among the youth . There have been several cases of suicide after losing hard earned cash or loan money with the hope of winning a bet ’’ to sponsees . App-Tastic Living
Nowadays there is an App for everything from gaming to healthy living to money management , all one needs to do is to visit the play store on their android gadgets and download . Siri has also taken over some roles .
Sports Betting Craze
Sports ’ betting has become a big trend in Kenya . The dream of becoming an overnight millionaire has led to a euphoric betting craze especially among the youth . There have been several cases of suicide after losing hard earned cash or loan money with the hope of winning a bet .
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