Oserian

Oserian (Masai, "Place of Peace"; locally, The Gin Palace; later, Djinn Palace) is a flower farm on the south shores of Lake Naivasha, Nakuru County, Kenya.[1] It is Africa's largest rose producer.[2] Oserian's wildlife corridor is more than 1.6 km (1 mi) in width through its property with reaches to the lake; it occupies more than 6 km (4 mi) of shoreline.[3]

For the Kenyan football club, see Oserian F.C.

Oserian
Town/CityLake Naivasha, Nakuru County
CountryKenya
Established1969
ProducesFlowers

History

Originally a country estate, the Moorish-style mansion was built in 1927 by Major Cyril Ramsay-Hill,[4] a rancher, former officer in an Indian regiment, and sometime Hollywood actor. It was based on his grandmother's home in Seville, Spain.[5] The crenellated and domed building features minarets, and contains an "inner courtyard, fountains, squash court, swimming pool, and polo grounds".[6]

During the colonial era, "The Djinn Palace" was "where things usually were very lively" for the Happy Valley set, according to Ulf Aschan.[7] It was built for Ramsay-Hill's wife, Molly (née Edith Mildred Maude; 1893–1939), who had an affair with and later married Josslyn Hay, 22nd Earl of Erroll.

In 1969, Oserian was established as a small vegetable growing farm.[8] In 1982, it became the first flower farm on Lake Naivasha.[9]

Tax avoidance

In 2020 it was reported that Dutch firms who were growing cut flowers in Kenya using addresses in Amsterdam to avoid tax on large turnovers. Prof. Attiya Waris who had studied this industry noted they are using Kenyan land but they are avoiding paying for it. Investigators (Investico) had found by using Kenyan data and the Panama Papers that companies like Oserian were avoiding tax. Oserian was using trusts in Liechtenstein and the British Virgin Islands in 2011 to avoid nearly all tax in Kenya despite a 47 million Euro turnover.[10]

References
  1. Davis, Art (19 December 2011). From Foot Safaris to Helicopters: 100 Years of the Davis Family in Missions. iUniverse. pp. 41–. ISBN 978-1-4620-6761-9.
  2. Trillo, Richard (2002). Kenya. Rough Guides. pp. 237–. ISBN 978-1-85828-859-8.
  3. Coglianese, Cary; Nash, Jennifer (2001). Regulating from the Inside: Can Environmental Management Systems Achieve Policy Goals?. Resources for the Future. pp. 136–. ISBN 978-1-891853-41-8.
  4. Huxley, Elspeth (8 June 2011). Out in the Midday Sun. Random House. pp. 115–. ISBN 978-1-4464-7581-2.
  5. Architectural Digest. John C. Brasfield Publishing Corporation. 1999. p. 122.
  6. Davenport-Hines, Richard. "Happy Valley set (act. 1924–1941)". Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
  7. Aschan, Ulf (1987). The Man Whom Women Loved. New York: St. Martin's Press. p. 142-143. ISBN 9780312022495.
  8. "Oserian Wildlife Lodges / About Us". oserianwildlife.com.
  9. Woodward, Christopher (13 February 2013). "This Kenyan Boomtown Is Getting Rich on Roses". Business Insider.
  10. "A rose is a rose but taxes are different: Dutch growers dodge tax in Kenya". DutchNews.nl. 26 February 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
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