Africa Report's Education Campaign Blog!

Several of my former students have had articles published on the Africa Report blog.

Here's a link to one of them: Karanja's article

Census

What could make all Kenyan bars close from six to ten all week?

The decennial census started yesterday, making this the fifth census in Kenya's history, with the first one taking place in 1969. This census may also be the first to release the results. The results of prior censuses have been withheld by politicians who worry an accurate count of Kenyans by region can make vote-rigging more difficult. In many other African countries, censuses have been suspended for political reasons, especially in countries where the population of certain communities have grown more than communities whose elite hold power. The Minister for Planning said this morning that although Kenya's previous counts didn't release the results, they did help Kenya develop the capacity to hold an accurate census this time, with massive financial and technical support from donors including the World Bank, the US government, SIDA, and others. He added that this time the results to all the questions on the census will be made public by this December and told Kenyans to judge him harshly should he fall back on that promise.

This census includes a question on ethnicity, which many people find unhelpful after the recent post-election violence. Other say it's necessary because otherwise politicians would be using fake ethnic statistics for their own purposes, and no one would be able to challenge them with real numbers. Considering the rising number of inter-ethnic marriages, I imagine it would be hard for many people to answer that question. Three of my students are working as census distributors and will hopefully tell me more about it after the week-long exercise. I asked my other students why they didn't sign up, and one told me that despite police protection, she wouldn't feel safe especially in areas where the census is highly controversial, such as in Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps where people feel they've been forgotten by the government for so long that it's an insult to pretend like they care now.

Those distributing the census are not the only ones who feel insecure. The census-takers are allowed to knock on people's doors up until ten o'clock at night, which is several hours past the time most people feel it's safe to open their door to strangers. The government has tried to overcome this obstacle by sending local leaders or residence council people to accompany the census-takers and by giving them special t-shirts, but these efforts won't be enough to convince many it's worth the risk of opening the door.

Let's cross our fingers that the census will indeed be used for effective and fair distribution of government resources and not for election manipulation or pork-barreling.

Finally back... and don't forget! Afrika Nipashe launch this Saturday!

I'm finally back after a very long silence. Probably if I had any regular readers they've given up on me, and understandably too. Basically back in April I started working at a wonderful institution that provides great internet access but blocks blog editing, and although the fiberoptic undersea cable is here, internet speeds in most of Nairobi's cyber cafes are still held back by machines from the 90s, so trying to use them is so frustrating I can actually feel the ulcers developing.

But since my last post in April, Nairobi has been the most interesting place, full of scams, heroic endeavour, and the always amusing charades of our politicians. I'm actually not supposed to be writing now because I need to use this brief window of good internet access to mail notes to my students, so the news from Kenya deserves an epic post stretching on for pages, I'll have to limit myself to a few words and promise to write again soon. Also, expect pictures because I finally got my camera fixed.

The hottest topic in Kenya at the moment (if will likely change by tomorrow) would arguably be the Mau forest, a watershed that feeds not only the head of the Nile and Lake Victoria. As I understand it, the trees enable the water to seep into the ground, and since they're being cut down, countries from Uganda to Egypt are going to experience even worse water shortages than we have currently. The topic has been politicized because people are being allowed to illegally claim land in the forest for farming. Some of these settlers are important constituents to certain national politicians, but the people claiming the largest sections of the forest are politicians themselves. The PM Raila Odinga said today he'd be willing to sacrifice his political career if it would solve this problem, which is a blatant lie but which also hints at the frustration building up over this ongoing saga. Former president Moi, who I am personally very surprised anyone listens to any more considering his criminal "governance" if we can call it that, is telling everyone to plant trees to solve the country's problems, but these land grabs by politicians have a long history in Kenya and planting new trees, although great, won't address the fundamental problem of the Mau forest being cut down.

The other major topic on everyone's mind is the most recent chapter in another drawn-out farce: whether those accused of inciting post-election violence will be tried at the Hague or by local tribunal. A former boss, Betty Murungi has just been appointed to the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission, which I hope will have better results than all of the other commissions in Kenya's recent history, and which is a start towards the local tribunal option. The US ambassador argues that a local tribunal is better because it will be faster than going to the ICC, but I not sure what Ranneberger is basing this on, considering how long overdue the promised new constitution is - surely that would be top a priority? Could we expect a tribunal to happen any faster? The political stumbling blocks not only slow the process, they also would water down any punishment or condemnation of those found guilty. Kenyan newspapers cover both issues deeply and also have plenty of op-eds which both take and refute my position, so I'll refer you on to them and get back to grading.

Speaking of my students, one of them sent me the following link which shows an artist's representations of Kenyan and American politicians as well as other notable figures: www.boydoyier.blogspot.com, and while I'm passing on links, Royal Africa Society also had some interesting ones:

How different is his policy? – The Economist
Barack Obama said all the right things about Africa—and left a few ticklish ones unsaid. The tone may shift a bit but the policy will be similar to George Bush’s.
http://www.economist.com/world/mideast-africa/displaystory.cfm?story_id=14038237

At a stroke he reframed the relationship between Africa and the West, reassuring his audience of Ghanaian parliamentarians and dignitaries that America would be there to support them but aiming at a post-aid Africa.
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/richard-dowden-fine-words-but-will-africa-listen-1743371.html

Is a Re-colonisation of Africa Underway? – New Vision
The Food and Agriculture Organisation has warned that the push by countries such as China, Malaysia and Middle Eastern nations to secure farmland overseas could create a neo-colonial system.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200907150059.html

Obama likes people from SOAS

Reproduced from the SOAS electronic Alumni Bulletin:
https://www.soasalumni.org//Page.aspx?pid=380&srctid=1&erid=176879


"President Barack Obama has announced the nomination of SOAS alumnus and seasoned diplomat, Ambassador Jonnie Carson (History Africa 1975) as Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs.

"Until his nomination, Carson was the National Intelligence Officer for Africa on the National Intelligence Council. He joined the NIC in September 2006, after a 37-year career in the Foreign Service. Prior to this appointment, Carson served as the Senior Vice President of the National Defense University in Washington DC (2003-2006).

"Carson's Foreign Service career includes ambassadorships to Kenya (1999-2003), Zimbabwe (1995-1997), and Uganda (1991-1994); and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of African Affairs (1997-1999). Earlier in his career he had assignments in Portugal, Botswana, Mozambique and Nigeria.

"He has also served as desk officer in the Africa section at State's Bureau of Intelligence and Research; Staff Officer for the Secretary of State (1978-1979), and Staff Director for the Africa Subcommittee of the US House of Representatives (1979-1982). Before joining the Foreign Service, Ambassador Carson was a Peace Corps volunteer in Tanzania.

"He has a BA in Arts in History and Political Science from Drake University and a MA in International Relations from the School of Oriental and African Studies.

"Ambassador Carson is the recipient of several Superior Honour Awards from the Department of State and a Meritorious Service Award from Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright. The Centers for Disease Control presented Ambassador Carson its highest award, "Champion of Prevention Award," for his leadership in directing the US Government's HIV/AIDS prevention efforts in Kenya.

"Senator Russ Feingold, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommitee on African Affairs has hailed Carson’s choice describing him as 'an accomplished career foreign service officer.'"

Nairobi's First Academic-leaning Africa-focused Book Club

Join us on April 18th from 5:00-6:00 for the launch of Nairobi's first academic-leaning, Africa-focused book club! Our first book will be Michela Wrong's de facto-banned It's Our Turn to Eat, which details at page-turning pace, the story of John Githong'o's anti-corruption whistle blowing and the Kenyan government's attempts to keep him quiet. We'll meet once monthly at cocktail hour, and yes, refreshments will be available. For the first meeting, we've reserved room 535 (department boardroom on the fifth floor) in the Gandhi Wing of the Main Campus of University of Nairobi.

The main agendas for the book club are:
1. To have fun
2. To get access to more books (especially since Nairobi book stores charge extortionist prices and our libraries need restocking)
3. To discuss books that relate to areas we're passionate about
4. To strengthen Nairobi's academic community and share ideas

We hope everyone will join us whether they're students, faculty, researchers from far away, NGO activists, Africanists, book enthusiasts, cocktail lovers, and everyone with a curious mind. We will also have some people living abroad who are in Nairobi in spirit joining us by email to widen the discussion. Hope to see you there!

Please RSVP with any specific cocktail requests, comments, questions or concerns by commenting on this post, emailing me at devon.knudsen [at] gmail.com, or by calling 0736748022.

Chinese pop and piano music on Africa's airwaves

The Confucius Institute at University of Nairobi was celebrating it's five year anniversary on campus with a dragon dance and free Chinese food, and I was lucky enough to be invited. Among the other guests was an enthusiastic journalist from China Radio International (CRI), a station which I had never heard of before, much less listened to, although it dates back to 1941. Although he was straight out of a university, he was already a seasoned diplomat, surrounded by Kenyan young ladies. I was determined to ask him to share some first-hand insight into Chinese-Africa relations, but I had to go teach a class, so he gave me his number, saying we could talk about it later. My phone was soon stolen, and with it his number, as well as my chance to interview him.

Yesterday I was flipping through the radio stations looking for music to get me through hours of doing laundry by hand. I found some hyper-energetic music which seemed like it would do the job. The station turned out to be CRI, and remembering the enthusiastic CRI journalist, I stayed tuned. Alternating between Western and Chinese music, news, and public interest features, their slogan is "Your gateway to China and the World." They have a specific sections devoted to news from the developing world and news from China. They advertised an upcoming feature on Tibet and gave a segment of an interview from the feature. Unsurprisingly, the interviewee was a Tibetan expressing how happy he was for all of the development his region had seen during the last ten years. There was also a Chinese-Pod type feature, teaching listeners how to say "dui bu qi" and "zhenma la". Out of the stations we have access to in Nairobi, CRI is one of the more entertaining, and one of the higher quality stations, but like the French channel, VOA, or even the BBC, it has an agenda. (At least it's an agenda which is relatively overt and straightforward, as when the Scottish presenter read text messages from African listeners heaping mountains of praise on CRI and Chinese music, and thanking the Chinese government for providing access to both. In fact, in this case, I had to wonder if the African listener didn't have his own agenda, trying to set himself up for one of the many scholarships made available through another welcome facet of Chinese foreign policy in Africa.)

But don't take my word for it; if you have a better internet connection than us, you can listen online: http://www.chinabroadcast.cn/ They broadcast in more languages than the BBC!

JICA Trip

Japanese foreign policy towards Africa, aid included, is known for its strategy of acting quietly. While Western and Chinese donors regularly make the news because one or another of their policies have either political overtones or political ramifications, Japanese aid to Africa rarely makes the news (with some interesting exceptions, especially among the local African press). Whereas Western voices generally dominate multi-laterial donor conferences, historically, according to a JICA staff member, Japanese representatives have just taken notes despite their substantial expertise in many areas of technical assistance. Japan prefers to label its aid efforts as "bi-laterial cooperation" rather than assistance, prioritizing equal (in the words of the head of a JICA office in Africa,) "eye-level" between donor and recipient. (Whether this is possible in a donor-recipient relationship is debatable, but I have seen evidence of Kenyan politicians acting in a quite "empowered" manner when dealing with their Japanese partners. I would even go out on a limb and dare suggest that Japan has allowed itself to be underestimated in this regard, perhaps out of admirable Japanese modesty, perhaps because it suited their overarching foreign policy goals.*

Drs. Ohno and Ohno(husband and wife)'s comparative work on British and Japanese aid to Africa offers some insight into attempts of the two countries to cooperate in hopes of achieving better results from their aid projects. Allow me to greatly oversimplify the issue and say that the logic behind these multi-laterial aid efforts is that Japanese aid is successful on the micro level or, in JICA's words, "in the field", whereas DfID's comparative advantage lies at the macro, or policy level.

However, Japan quickly found that these and other attempts at multi-lateral assistance were not going exactly as they had hoped. Because of JICA's low profile, other agencies weren't aware of JICA's strengths, nor thinking constructively of how to play to them. JICA tried to explain its history, successes, goals, etc. to their partners among the other aid agencies, but soon decided it would be more efficient just to become a little better known in the appropriate circles. Sadako Ogata, veteran Japanese representative for various ODA and humanitarian and development-related UN projects and conferences, decided it was time to actively claim a little piece of the spotlight.

Leading up to the TICAD Follow Up meeting in Botswana held over the weekend, JICA invited journalists from the UK to visit their projects in Uganda and Kenya. I managed to squeeze my way onto the Kenya segment, and visited a number of projects including the following:
1. KEFRI, Kenya Forestry Research Institute
2. Mwea Irrigation Scheme
3. A JOCV volunteer working with Kenyan teenagers in a rehabilitation center for children who have committed crimes
4. Facilities which host Kenyan teachers, trainers, and administrators from around the country and improve their pedagogical skills in science and math.

The projects were diverse but several themes emerged. For one, JICA wouldn't start a project without making sure the government would be able to and wanted to take ownership. To do this, the Kenyan government had to be willing to raise funds to help pay for the project and participants weren't given any kind of monetary incentive (including daily allowances)to take part.*

Another continuity among the JICA projects was a clear effort to only attempt what JICA could do well. Prior to starting a project, JICA would study whether there were obstacles to the projects success, and whether Japan was the best donor country to conduct the project. Some JICA projects in Africa have encountered unforeseen obstacles outside of their control,* but I think it's fair to argue that Japan has tried to learn from these experiences.

Staff from the JICA UK office accompanied us on our trip. As we rode back to Nairobi, some of the JICA UK staff, who had to catch a flight and be back in the office by the following morning, mentioned that they had better sleep on the plane because it was going to be a big day. I inquired why, and they said that again, with guidance from Ogata, their office had for the first time, placed an advertisement in the press of any Western developed country. People in the UK are inundated with adverts from Oxfam, ChristianAid, and others, and are well aware of USAID and aid agencies around Europe, but Japan, which until the bubble economy burst was the top donor to many developing countries, was generally unknown.

It will be interesting to see how long JICA continues this publicity campaign and whether it influences other areas of Japanese policy towards Africa. I'm also waiting to see if this turns into the start of a new era in Japanese ODA or if it's just a short-lived phase. Anyway, thank you very much to all the kind JICA staff who entertained my poor Japanese and endless stream of questions.

* For more information, you'll have to wait for my PhD thesis.