Toyota officially announced plans this week to establish its regional headquarters for East and Central Africa in Kenya.

This comes after Prime Minister Odinga spent several days in Japan encouraging the company to invest in Kenya. Toyota responded by locating nearly 646,000 square feet of land in Nairobi to build its regional hub.

Toyota executives are currently in Nairobi discussing other ways they can invest in Kenya. They have already announced plans to station a green energy expert in Kenya to explore ways the company can take advantage of Kenya's blossoming green industries.

Prime Minister Odinga expressed his satisfaction regarding Toyota's display of confidence in the Kenyan economy. He also pledged that any company such as Toyota wishing to invest in Kenya will receive full support from the Kenyan government: "We will do everything possible to enable Toyota and all other businesses that want to set up here do so with great ease."

?Source: Kenya Broadcasting Company?

According to a new report from the Committee to Protect Journalists, Kenya has established itself as a model of free press among its African and European counterparts.

The report noted that the number of African journalists who flee their home countries due to government suppression and censorship is on the increase. However, this trend has not carried over into Kenya. The worldwide survey by the CPJ shows that Kenya was the only country in East Africa where freedom of the press was sufficiently observed.

Nairobi has become a home to many African journalists looking for a safe haven to report honestly and accurately. The report notes that Kenya gives them the freedom to file stories without fear of censorship.

In addition to providing shelter for Somali refugees, Kenya has become a home for Somali journalists looking to report on the chaos next door. The CPJ report observes that over 60 Somali reporters have relocated to Kenya to safely chronicle the border situation.

To read the CPJ report, click here.

Kenya Electricity Generating Co., the East African nation's biggest power producer, signed a contract worth more than $1.3 billion for Sinclair Knight Merz Pty Ltd. to be consultants for the construction of facilities to provide 280 megawatts of geothermal power from underground hot springs.

"The scope of the project includes four 70-megawatt power generating machines, steam-gathering systems, substations, transmission lines and other infrastructure," Ken Gen Managing Director Edward Njoroge said.

Work will begin this month and take three years, Njoroge added. The geothermal power project, which will be Kenya's biggest, comprises two fields in Olkaria near the town of Naivasha, he said.

Geothermal power offers a cost effective, reliable, sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional power sources.

Kenya, East Africa's biggest economy, currently produces 166 megawatts of electricity from geothermal sources.

A Kenyan researcher and conservationist has been awarded the prestigious World Ecology Award, highlighting the country's longstanding commitment to the environment.

Dr. David Western, a former Kenya Wildlife Service director and founder of the African Conservation Center in Kenya, will receive the 2010 World Ecology Award from the Harris World Ecology Center at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

The award is presented to an eminent individual who has raised public awareness about global ecology and made significant contributions to environmental protection and biodiversity conservation. Previous recipients include Ted Turner and John Denver.

Dr. Western has spent more than 42 years engaged in research in Kenya studying the interactions between livestock, wildlife and humans, with the aim of developing conservation strategies applicable at an ecosystem scale.

In accepting the honor, Dr. Western commended the Kenyan government's commitment to conservation.

"Eight percent of our land is set aside for national parks and we still have lots of wildlife that migrates freely," said Dr. Western. "Very few other countries have that."

During his helm at the KWS, he introduced an eco-tourism concept known as "Parks Beyond Parks," which allowed people to live in harmony with the animals as they benefit from the proceeds from the parks.

Kenyan Nobel laureate Wangari Maathai lauded Western for his persistence: "People with such dreams and convictions have a fire which you cannot put out."

As aid workers save lives amidst the destruction in Haiti, it is Kenyan technology that is supporting the relief efforts. Ushahidi is an engine that maps text messages and calls for help throughout a crisis. The website provides aid groups with a better picture of dire needs for food, water and medical assistance.

Ushahidi, which means "testimony" or "witness" in Swahili, is an open source project that allows users to share information, via the Web or mobile phone, during crises. The innovative platform for aggregating mobile news, as it happens, was originally developed by Kenyan citizen journalists in 2008.

The page dedicated to tracking the current crisis in Haiti has a map illustrating the reported locations of collapsed structures, damaged schools, and blocked roads in the nation's capital of Port-Au-Prince. Another feature highlights fires, contaminated water supplies, trapped persons, and survivors.