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• November 28, 2008
• 22:00

  The Dark Man

   » ‎ Words Much Like Poetry
  it is not that i do not thirst for knowledge
  or pay mind to the concept of the day,
  but at times it seems as if that territory,
  that place where issues coalesce then spill forth,
  is as foreign to me as the moon.
  i cannot expound in writ upon the dark man,
  about the drudgery that was enforced upon him,
  and the poverty that then befell him.
  nor can i construct rhetoric,
  drawn of a century and more,
  whereupon the grand tale of his struggle to find dignity
  in a world which seemed designed to vilify him
  would find me acclaim.
  only in spoken exchange can i extol my thoughts
  on how he has redefined his talents,
  the dark man is no longer a universal object of disparagement,
  now he is close friend and perfect complement
  to that which was held pedestaled above
  the reach of his competent palm.
  and the ability that was always his due,
  as it is woman's due,
  has not stopped old glory
  from snapping sharply in the breeze.

• 19:02

  Somali Piracy & Mombasa’s Coming Property Boom

   » ‎ Kenyanentrepreneur.com

  Tags:  Somalia  

  I was having a discussion last night about these Somali Pirates and how succesful they’ve been in terms of getting millions of dollars from the ships they’ve hijacked.  I think so far, the Somali’s have gotten about $150 million dollars in cash! wow! Anyway, someone mentioned that Mombasa is about to experience a real estate property [...]

• 15:59

  Recreating Kenya's Beatiful Political Mirage

   » ‎ You Missed This
  The so-called cabinet 12-step roadmap to electoral and constitutional order roadmap to reforms must be seen for what it truly is: SMOKESCREEN TO PULL WOOL over the face of Kenyans. Make no mistake the stakes are too high for Kibaki to afford the luxury of retracing the 2002 Kenyan dream he singularly help extinguish. The besieged cabinet ministers and MPs accused of involvement in PEV could have provided timely political collateral.
  
  The dusted script is so predictable so much so that even before you say Anglo Leasing, the political daggers will be flying menacingly in search of culpable head from opposing camps. Kibaki’s roadmap is nothing but halftime before the teams come out tearing at each other within THE GRAND COLLUSION.
  
  The roadmap smells EXPEDIENCY tailored to cement the much loved IMPUNITY. Reading the fine print is a stack reminder of new constitution in 100 days that was promised with the singular intention of being trashed. The idea of legislating a fixed date of elections has never sounded any sweeter to Kenyans with their traditional short political memories.
  
  So the need craft a new electoral has been reinvented? Well, blackmail and revenge are delicious meals that are best served cold. No sane person would dare expose Kivuitu and his team lest the good old lawyer opts for time-tested SOLOMONIC wisdom and rips the can open leaving the nasty and criminal contents to crawl out in the open. Speak of immaculately albeit unwittingly placing your own neck on the chopping block.
  
  All the populist talk about creation an interim boundaries review commission is will only soon see the political shit hit the fun. Woe unto Kenyans below for they will have to endure the resulting odour and discomfort.
  
  We have scoundrels for politicians and NO LEADER nor LEADERSHIP. Their myopic view of optimal administrative and electoral units revolves exclusively around ETHNIC hegemony and vote shopping. But expect them to win their gullible supporters whose cheers will dim any rational examination of the present gimmick to postpone apocalypse.
  
  Gate keepers
  You cannot fail to smell SELFISH games and self-preservation anytime querulous Kenyan politicians come out united on an issue. Wait till MPs and ministers hit the road in their weekend village escapades to drum up ETHNIC preferences.
  
  Our political class is allergic to the truth and will fall for anything that makes the scuttle the ugly truth staring right in front of them. Kenya is not in the present deep hole because of lack of good session papers or intentions. It is the DEARTH of POLITICAL WILL as the leaders feathers their nests as they erect stone walls to GATE KEEP Kenya from Kenyans themselves.
  
  The adage talk is cheap has never been more apt. The present buzzword of planning to enact anti-hate speech legislation is a poor effort at bandaging a festering national wound that will surely see Kenya succumb to septic shock. As a country we re our own worst enemies continuing to dig incessantly while we are already at the bottom of a pit.
  
  No wonder we find time to fashion roadmap facades for a country teeming with wretched IDPs within her own borders. Believing the present political kite is akin to trusting hyenas to guard the choicest of steak

• 12:22

  Support AfriGadget’s Young Mobile Reporters

   » ‎ AfriGadget

  Tags:  AfriGadget  

  If you donated before your funds never made it to us and are lying unclaimed in your PayPal account. Please consider re-sending that money via the new widget below. (this one does work, I have tested it)

  

  The Grassroots Reporting Project is one of the initiatives that we’ve been talking about for a little while here at AfriGadget. It’s where we put smarter mobile phones into the hands of young Africans and get them to report AfriGadget stories. We’re at a point now where we’ve identified the right people, what we need is your help in raising $500 to make it happen.

  The pilot project

  As this is our pilot project, we want to start small and learn lessons before we expand to other parts of the continent. Our first group is made up of some youth from the Khayelitsha township outside of Cape Town. Local blogger Frerieke van Bree is acting as their blogging and multimedia mentor as they are taught how to find and tell stories about local inventors, innovators and local people doing ingenious things around Cape Town.

  Two of the individuals that will be taking part in the program are Lukhona Lufuta and Zintle Sithole. Both live in Khayelitsha Township near Cape Town. They are 12th grade students who are part of a 12 week leadership program called COSAT (Centre of Science and Technology, a High school for science, IT and Math).

  

  
  

  What the money is for

  We had originally thought to use the Nokia N95 that we were so kindly given by Pop!Tech, this is a fairly costly device to have an accident happen to, so we have decided to ask the AfriGadget community help us purchase the Sony Ericsson C702. According to Frerieke,

  “The phone that was most convincing to me due to it’s nice robust appearance - no sliding or flipping to open, it’s solid, easy to use, doesn’t look too fancy and it is splash and dust resistant (useful in the sandy township).”

  

  Your part

  We could use your help in a number of areas. First and foremost, just help spread the word about the project. If this pilot project turns out well, we’ll be doing this in many other untapped parts of the continent, and we’ll need even greater support.

  Second, donate using the Chipin widget above, or to main@afrigadget.com

  Lastly, thank you for being part of this community, for helping it get traction and grow all over the world.

  [Update: After talking with support at ChipIn, they told me it is no longer supported, unless you create it through their new service SproutBuilder. I have done this, and a new widget is available above.]

• 10:07

  A Snapshot of the Ongoing Crafts Tradefair at The Sarit Center

   » ‎ Kenyanpoet
  I am just from the Crafts trade fair that has been running from 26th till Sunday, 30th and my! I am broke already.
  
  After years of going to Maasai Market and other hidden places where artifacts and curios are sold, I have learned to look out for rare finds which I know I will not see on every lady during that wedding or one of those evenings where African themes come in handy. The sarit Crafts expo has not disappointed me at all. I dashed there with a colleague during my lunch break yesteday and today and I could just not get enough time to visit all the stands.
  
  Among the exhibitors who are there are a team from Nigeria(but I found their attires a tad too pricey - they are along the range of Ksh.6,000 and above), Kazuri beads company are also there, Woodley weavers, Ethiopian Weavers and Inside the Baobab just to name a few. Many of the other exhibitors are Women groups and groups formed by those living with HIV/AIDS who make curios as a way of generating some income.
  The Dorcus Beads  stand has Beads produced from recycled paper by women living with HIV/AIDS across Kenya and Uganda. The money is used to care for their own children and others orphaned y AIDS.
  I bought a bunch of them as she had alot of variety at a very afforable rate(from Ksh. 200/- for necklaces)
  
  My next stop was the Shanga Shanga Crafts whose proprietor, Doris N. Muli is the designer of all the items, she  is based in Malindi.
  
  She had an array of exquisite bags made of canvas, bead work others made out of the Ugandan Bark Clothe and others made of sisal with a range of designs. She also has a wide range of Khanga tops of different colours and sizes.
  
  Inside the Baobab had some customised/africanised cd holders, Folders, toilet paper hanges(see photos here) and picture albums. They are located at Yaya Center 2nd Flr.
  
  As I mentioned earlier, I just did not have enough time to visit all the stands but I can promise you that if you are looking for something uniquely African, you will most likely get it the trade fair.
  
  I hope I'll get time to go there again before it closes.
  
  See more photos here.

• 9:20

  Animation seminar at Sarit - Dec 6th

   » ‎ Kenyan Pundit

  Tags:  Kenya  

  This looks like it will be a very interesting event. The organizers hope to break the myths surrounding animation in Kenya, such as it’s a “foreign art” and that you need big expensive computers to do it well. The event is expected to be “an amazing opportunity for Kenyan design geeks and animation enthusiasts to meet up, share ideas and plot on how to take over the worldwith our own animation content starting 2009!”

  See the website for registration details and more information. Kudos to the Kenya Film Commission for sponsoring this.

  If anyone reading this attends, please come back and report on how it went…

  AOB: For more on the current state of animation in Africa, see this article.

• 4:24

  Book Launch: History of Resistance in Kenya 1884-2002 by Maina wa Kinyatti, Mau Mau Research Centre

   » ‎ Kenyanpoet
  BOOK LAUNCHMau Mau Research CentreandProf. Maina wa KinyattiCordially invite you to the launch of the BookHISTORY OF RESISTANCE IN KENYA 1884-2002 authored by Maina wa KinyattionFriday 28th November 2008 between 5.30 - 7.30 pmatGOETHE-INSTITUT NAIROBI Guest Speakers:• Hon. James Orengo- Minister for Lands • His Excellency Mr. Julio César Gónzález Marchante -Ambassador, Embassy of the Republic of Cuba Mau Mau Research CenterP.o. Box 746, 00200 Nairobi Tel: 0723911371 or 0722488367E-mail: info.mmrc@gmail.com

• 4:23

  [Abahlali] A Place in the City - new film on Abahlali baseMjondolo

   » ‎ Black Looks
  A Place in the City is a powerful film documenting the land rights movement through the lives of members of Durban shackdwellers, Abahlali baseMjondolo. Nearly 15 years since apartheid ended, millions of black South Africans still live in self-built shacks – without sanitation, adequate water supplies, or electricity. But A Place in the City will overturn all [...]SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "[Abahlali] A Place in the City - new film on Abahlali baseMjondolo", url: "http://www.blacklooks.org/2008/11/abahlali_a_place_in_the_city_-_new_film_on_abahlali_basemjondolo.html" });

• 1:13

  Social Media: For Good, For Bad, For All

   » ‎ What An African Woman Thinks
  In the wake of the deadly attacks in Mumbai, I've been reading blogs by Indians, both at home and abroad and I'm really glad that they're out there, posting, because their perspective brings the story home to me in a way an MSM news story just ...doesn't.
  
  Interesting twist though: I stumbled upon a Reuters article talking about how blogs are feeding the information frenzy on the Mumbai attacks which also reported that some twitters and bloggers came in for criticism as they tried to provide continuous information about what was happening.
  
  Apparently, there was fear in some quarters that the terrorists might be keeping up with the news as well, via blogs and tweets, and that over eager bloggers and twitters may be aiding and abetting them by inadvertently providing them with vital information.
  
  Sort of makes you pause and think about all the ways in which social media are changing our world.
  
  For those blogging in Mumbai, my heart goes out to you.
  
  As I read, I can tell that the most frustrating thing for you is that although the deadly what is plain for all to see, there's not yet telling why, really. It all seems like a meticulously planned, well-executed exercise in futility with collateral damage to human life numbering in the mid-hundreds.
  
  I don't get it either.It's my window, but I don't own the view.
• 0:23

  The People Are Hungry, The Leaders Are Feasting

   » ‎ What An African Woman Thinks
  Two big stories are playing side by side in the Kenyan media right now, splitting the screen as it were.
  
  The one concerns a growing food crisis. To illustrate, just last year, a two-kilo packet of maize flour retailed for less than 50 Ksh. It is currently retailing at 120 Ksh. With reports that maize stocks are a quarter of what they should be, there’s fear that prize could go even higher. But there’s also the fear that Kenyans cannot take much more of this.
  
  Maize flour is the key ingredient in Kenya’s most affordable staple meal. There’s nowhere that Kenya’s poor know to go from here. They’ve already been boxed into this daily diet because they can’t afford much else.
  
  On television the other night, a grandmother who’s taking care of her three grandchildren and a man in Kibera railed against the escalating prices saying something had to give. When you earn 100 bob a day and a packet of Unga costs 120 bob and you have an entire family to feed, how do you survive, what do you do?
  
  It is said that close to 50 per cent of Kenyans live on less than 150 Ksh a day.
  
  It's not just the price of maize that has shot through the roof, of course. The prices of all foodstuffs are up. The cost of transport is up. We've received notice that water charges will go up beginning January next year.
  
  On the other side of the screen, are our greedy fatcat MPs are rubbing our noses in their defiant refusal to pay taxes on their benefits. We’ve called them every name we can think of: greedy, selfish, callous for starters, and other more colourful ones besides. They continue to act with impunity, goading us with a silent ‘but what can you do, really?’ They walk past the extended TV microphones and stubbornly refuse to look into the camera.
  
  When I started writing this, I was going to say I don’t know what our leaders are thinking. But it occurred to me that our current troubles are because our leaders are not generally known to think.
  
  It's like that's what they do when they are sworn in: they promise to set aside any sense of decency and promise not to think while in office. Because seriously, it's hard work to not think to the extent that these people don't think.
  
  God help us.
  
  PS, KTN have been really feisty about keeping the story of the MPs refusal to pay tax front and centre. Good for them.It's my window, but I don't own the view.