President Kagame appeared on Mindspeak show, hosted by Aly Khan Stachu, CEO of Rich Management. Aly Sanchu invited President Kagame to speak in his show via Twitter!!!!
Showing posts with label Governance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Governance. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Kenya: Leaders to Blame for Food Crisis
By David Kigochi
It is a shameful and difficult moment for Kenyans as the world watches the images of people dying of hunger in some parts of the country. The apathy by the government is despicable as it has been clear that there was going to be a shortage of food. It is sad that the government has had to be jolted into action by individual Kenyans and corporates.
This is a reflection of an increasingly indifferent and inhumane leadership which lives on the great largesse and expense of tax payers whose resources they have failed to manage better.
The privileged few are busy creating a welfare state for themselves while the rest of the citizens wallow in poverty and hunger. The famine has not spared anyone irrespective of ethnicity, region or political enclaves. The areas ravaged by famine have MPs and ministers in the government. Their inaction borders on criminal negligence. They only give knee-jerk reactions when images of the dying invade their living rooms and appetites.
And if deaths are not reported to them, then no one surely could have starved to death!
Most Kenyans know what is needed to mitigate against drought and famine- water harvesting, sustainable land policy, efficient farming methods, resistant crops, forestation, banning useless imports, cheap credit, good storage facilities and irrigation.
Infrastructure is crucial. If there were accessible roads in these regions, food would be available to the drought struck regions and farmers would not be feeding their potato and cabbage crops to their livestock because they lack accessible roads to get their crop to market!
It smacks of criminal negligence for the government to admit its food distribution system is ineffective and the only response is to deploy the military and National Youth Services when people are dying. It appears that famine is big business. Famine is a cash-cow to well-heeled operatives in the corridors of power. There is big money in transport and logistics as administrators divert and sell famine relief supplies. Coincidentally, every famine is preceded by a season of plenty. Last year, for example, there was the glut that saw dairy processors empty thousands of litres of milk into trenches.
This is a reflection of an increasingly indifferent and inhumane leadership which lives on the great largesse and expense of tax payers whose resources they have failed to manage better.
The privileged few are busy creating a welfare state for themselves while the rest of the citizens wallow in poverty and hunger. The famine has not spared anyone irrespective of ethnicity, region or political enclaves. The areas ravaged by famine have MPs and ministers in the government. Their inaction borders on criminal negligence. They only give knee-jerk reactions when images of the dying invade their living rooms and appetites.
And if deaths are not reported to them, then no one surely could have starved to death!
Most Kenyans know what is needed to mitigate against drought and famine- water harvesting, sustainable land policy, efficient farming methods, resistant crops, forestation, banning useless imports, cheap credit, good storage facilities and irrigation.
Infrastructure is crucial. If there were accessible roads in these regions, food would be available to the drought struck regions and farmers would not be feeding their potato and cabbage crops to their livestock because they lack accessible roads to get their crop to market!
It smacks of criminal negligence for the government to admit its food distribution system is ineffective and the only response is to deploy the military and National Youth Services when people are dying. It appears that famine is big business. Famine is a cash-cow to well-heeled operatives in the corridors of power. There is big money in transport and logistics as administrators divert and sell famine relief supplies. Coincidentally, every famine is preceded by a season of plenty. Last year, for example, there was the glut that saw dairy processors empty thousands of litres of milk into trenches.
Less than eight months later, milk prices have risen from Sh21 to Sh30. Another bumper harvest in parts of Eastern went to waste due to poor storage. At the same time, the Government announced a measly price of Sh1,200 for a bag of maize due to glut. This price was considerably lower than the Sh2,500 being offered to farmers in neighbouring countries. Naturally, farmers found it only sensible to sell their produce to the more lucrative foreign markets, leaving the country struggling to replace the depleted strategic grain reserve.
We cannot talk of Vision 2030 as there can never be a vision for the dead. We need to get our priorities right. For decades we have been talking about food security and yet we continue with the same trend of talking and doing nothing.
We cannot talk of Vision 2030 as there can never be a vision for the dead. We need to get our priorities right. For decades we have been talking about food security and yet we continue with the same trend of talking and doing nothing.
We know the solutions to the problem-provide water for irrigation, educate farmers on modern agricultural practices, infrastructure to distribute food from surplus to deficit areas. For this to happen, we need proactive leadership one that is listening to the people. Kenyans are starving not because the land is infertile, but because there is total mix up of priorities. In the short term, the government can suspend the servicing of the Sh32 billion debt to the Central Bank of Kenya and divert the funds towards an aggressive programme to put up dams in drought prone zones, upscale irrigation projects, open up the road network in the famine ravaged zones to ensure access and supply of food in the affected areas.
Kigochi is the national convenor, Central for United Kenya Forum.Read more here http://allafrica.com
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Sudan: Fight for the soul of the North
AlJazeera Feature: As Sudan is split into two, the government in the North faces growing resentment over the loss of national pride. Indeed, we are living in interesting times.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Should African Countries Dollarise?
Zimbabwe's inflation eased in March to 2.7 per cent, down from 3.0 per cent in February, thanks to lower prices for telecommunications and medicine, the government said Friday.
The southern African country suffered a decade of runaway prices amid hyperinflation.
The economy stabilised after the government abandoned the worthless local currency in 2009, allowing trade in US dollars and other major foreign currencies.
The formation of a power-sharing government in 2009 by the main political rivals President Robert Mugabe and Morgan Tsvangirai has also brought stability to the economy.
But foreign investors have maintained a wait-and-see stance amid concerns over new equity regulations which seek to give locals majority stakes in foreign-owned companies.
Read more here http://www.africareview.com/
Thursday, April 14, 2011
DEMOCRACY AND GOOD GOVERNANCE IN AFRICA
Kenyan prime minister Raila Odinga spoke at CSIS about the “democracy deadlock” in Africa. During an event hosted by CSIS Africa Program deputy director Richard Downie, the prime minister stated that the democratization movement of the 1990s is being undermined by a new pattern of failing elections. Reversing this trend is of paramount importance, he said, given that 21 African nations are heading to the polls in 2011. Mr. Odinga said he had learned from personal experience that power-sharing governments are not a viable solution to disputed election outcomes.
The prime minister discussed the recent election crisis in Cote d’Ivoire, comparing it to the contentious 2007 election in Kenya. Mr. Odinga had urged the losing candidate, Laurent Gbagbo, to step aside, but Gbagbo refused to put his country ahead of his personal ambition.
Despite Africa’s election crises, Mr. Odinga said he remains an Afro-optimist and is confident that the will of the people will prevail with the help of civil society and the rising middle class.
Read more here http://csis.org
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