President Uhuru Kenyatta has announced that the ban on the sale of alcohol in restaurants and eateries has been lifted.
Speaking during an update on the country's Covid-19 safety measures on Wednesday, August 26, he also extended the opening hours for restaurants and hotels by one hour.
He however extended the closure of bars and nightclubs by another 30 days.
He noted that the measures which were introduced 30 days ago were conditional and was thankful to Kenyans for adhereing to the guidelines set by the government.
On Monday, August 24, stakeholders had appealed to the head of state to lift the ban, citing massive losses since their closure.
Uhuru had banned the sale of alcohol in hotels on Monday, July 27, and fired a warning to anyone found in breach of the directive.
The head of state also lifted the ban on importation of second hand clothes, popularly known as mitumba.
Details of how the importation will be done and the protocols for the same will be announced on Thursday, August 27.
He was pleased to note that even amid the pandemic, the economy was growing a rate of 4.6% compared to 5.5% last year
The president observed that the pandemic has inspired businesses to change their models in order to adjust to the changing times.
"But the inspiring successes amongst us have been those that have used the Covid-19 crisis to re-imagine their conditions. The banking sector, for instance, has begun to re-tool and humanize its model. Instead of focusing on profits, it has re-engineered its model to focus on the customer.
"What these examples of re-tooling business in times of crisis teach us is that a crisis represents both danger and opportunity," he spoke.
He explained that those who horrify themselves with the danger, would not survive, but those who choose to exploit the opportunities presented by the crisis, would become the heroes of the moment.
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