Laura Otieno

Multimedia Reporter
Environmentalist
science writer

[SASA @SASAalliance]

When we talk about targeted investments changing lives, this is what we mean.
In @siayagov , premature babies weighing less than 1,000g are surviving&thriving, thanks to investments in specialised newborn care.
https://t.co/xzhMIrOCaM

Story by @lauraachieng @citizentvkenya

[Big Think @bigthink]

He won a major short story prize. Then he was accused of using AI.

https://t.co/6uxcKfLxuY

[Ciru Muriuki 🇰🇪🪬 @CiruMuriuki]

I just watched a video where adults in Korea meet up to play cops and robbers, and I thought about organizing one here until I realized we would be joined by real robbers 😅

[𝚔𝚒𝚛𝚞𝚝𝚒 @kiruti]

You learnt today we had an oil refinery in Changamwe? What were you doing in school??

[Old School Eddie @Old_SchoolEddie]

I post this every year during Holy Week! 😂

It cracks me up every time.

Good Christian humor.

[Laura Otieno @lauraachieng]

😂😂😂😂😂

[Farhiya ✨ @farhiiiyaaa___]

Wamefunga barabara ya kuingia town tukashukishwa mahali sijui tutembee tuingie town. I had to just follow the trail of people and trust that wanajua mahali wanaenda na watanifikisha town. I felt like a wildebeest in the great migration😭😭

[Laura Otieno @lauraachieng]

Watu milioni mia mbili wanazungumza Kiswahili barani Afrika. Ipo haja ya kushirikisha watu hawa katika mkondo wa taarifa kuhusu mabadiliko ya tabianchi. Hii leo #Mongabayswahili inazindua rasmi tovuti ya kujaza pengo hili. @MongabayAfrique @MeshaScience #Swahilifornature

[CPA Peter Ndirangu @pitandirangu]

Understanding How Tax Works for Influencers & Freelancers in Kenya.

Let’s break this down using a hypothetical scenario.

You land a gig worth Ksh. 100,000.
The company pays you 95,000 and withholds 5,000 as tax.

Many people think that 5,000 is the final tax. It is NOT.

That 5,000 is a Withholding Tax ; which simply means tax paid in advance on your behalf.

What this means in practice:
• The tax authority already knows you earned 100,000
• The company remits the 5,000 withholding tax
• Upon remitting the 5,000 , a withholding certificate is issued .
• That certificate links the income to your PIN

When filing your taxes, the system already expects you to declare the 100,000 income.

With the current validation rules, you cannot declare less than what has been reported.

Here’s the important part most people miss 👇
-You are not taxed on the 100,000 unless you have zero expense

-You are taxed on NET PROFIT.

Net Profit = Income – Expenses

Example:
Income from gig: 100,000
Possible expenses:
• Capital allowance on Equipment (camera, lighting, microphone)- most people have zero clue on this 😎
• Internet costs
• Transport for the shoot
• Editing software subscriptions
• Studio hire
• Assistant payments

Assume total valid expenses = 40,000

Your taxable profit will be 60,000, not 100,000.

The 5,000 withholding tax you already paid is then credited against your final tax liability.

Important to note going forward (especially from this year 2026)

-Expenses must be properly supported, ideally through eTIMS compliant receipts/invoices.

-If your influencer or freelance business is:
• unstructured
• cash-based
• poorly documented,

Reconstructing expenses at the end of the year will not work

This is one of the main reasons why influencers & freelancers must treat their brand like a real business.
-Track your income
 -Record your expenses
 -Keep invoices and receipts
 -Use proper documentation

Otherwise, you risk paying tax on income that was actually spent running your business.

The earlier you structure your business model for Tax planning , the better

#CreatorEconomy #Freelancers #Influencers #TaxEducation #Taxfiling #Taxcompliance

[Laura Otieno @lauraachieng]

@jacob_ampeire @MwesigyeWalter 😂😂😂😂😂😂

[Laura Otieno @lauraachieng]

@MwesigyeWalter 😂😂walk me through your thought process, Walter. I aspire to peak this level of savagery 😂😂😂

[Uncle Ras D'artte @Dartte__45]

Almost every single time Ugandans hear kiswahili, brutality is close by, it's the language of state brutality, it was then when amin & obote soldiers terrorised Buganda, it was the same used by M7 guys to terrorise Teso(we learnt it in the process), and it was used in Acholi & lango during the LRA war to brutalise the local population.
It's the same language now used when people are kidnapped in numberless hiace vans(drones).
In Buganda they've refused to learn it & detest it as a silent protest.
There are places if you're going to get a wife, you could lose her because they heard you speak kiswahili, the language of torment.

[Permanent Mission of Kenya to the UN 🇰🇪 🇺🇳 @KenyaMissionUN]

Call for applications: 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗿 position at the Permanent Mission of Kenya to the United Nations, New York.

Applications open through 𝗙𝗲𝗯𝗿𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟮𝟭 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲.

[Kenya Meteorological Service Authority @MeteoKenya]

🌤️ January 2026 Climate Outlook 🌤️

Most parts of the country are expected to experience mainly sunny and dry conditions during January 2026.
🌦️ However, occasional rainfall is likely in a few areas, including western Kenya, the Lake Victoria Basin, the Southern Rift Valley, parts of the Highlands East & West of the Rift Valley (including Nairobi County), the south-eastern lowlands, and southern coastal areas.

👀 Stay updated through our official platforms ⬇️

📥 January 2026 Monthly Forecast:
https://t.co/WPwrXAA2Pz

📥 Weekly Forecast: https://t.co/o7ruSeD9PC
📥 County Forecasts: https://t.co/Z8cIxu5dkI

📲 WhatsApp Channel: https://t.co/hxKngV8D47

✅ Stay informed. Stay prepared.

#January2026 #KenyaWeather #WeatherReady #ClimateSmart

[GIJN Africa @gijnAfrica]

📣 Calling all data journalists!

The 2026 Sigma Awards are open! Share your most impactful 2025 data project for a chance to be recognized on a global stage.

🗓 Deadline: January 11.

🔗 Apply: https://t.co/DKmAnIiJeP

[Lukas Not Podolski @OtitoNosike]

Read. Feel. See.

https://t.co/afmMHJjS49

[Citizen TV Kenya @citizentvkenya]

Cabinet approves the rollout of Second Generation Smart Driving Licences with an instant fines system, mobile licence wallet and driver merit and demerit points

[The Standard Digital @StandardKenya]

A fresh Kenyan police contingent of 230 officers departed Nairobi on Monday for Haiti and barely 24 hours later, the same aircraft returned home with a matching number of officers, some limping off the plane on crutches, worn down by the brutal realities of a mission thousands of kilometres away.

https://t.co/PWO0zYUGF5

[Laura Otieno @lauraachieng]

Dear @KenyaPower your incompetence is shining through the roof. We have been complaining of intermittent power outages for the last one month but you remain indifferent. Hiyo ni stima ni mnatuwekea kama dose ya malaria? Please do better