Kenya offline, indeed
written by aeichener , June 19, 2007

Brilliant title!

I refer to three articles of KenyaImagine with comparable scope, "How not to write a service charter", "Public Image", and "New Masks, Old Faces" because the latter showcases the same mental and attitude deficits that Rebecca's article chastises.

Indeed, it would be a worthwhile question of the week to have a contest for the worst government website. I believe the shortlist would include PSRD, e-government and Ministry for Information and Communication.

Alexander

Kenic
written by Nekessa , June 20, 2007

Lack of information on Kenyan websites, makes research ever so difficult. The sharing of information is still seen as a threat, with fear that the "enemy" might get the upper hand.

At a time when many Kenyans are getting online, it is about time Kenyan firms invested in internet infrastructure, what with all the talent of young Kenyans!

standard better than the rest
written by buda , June 21, 2007

I think teh Standard page is way better than Nation's: their archiving is awesome though disappointing at times, their search engine within their own data base is more accurate, links to their sister companies actualy lead you to a real website not the annoying "under construction". I also applaud them for ranking the most popular stories.

Kenyan Business don\'t invest
written by chiefouko , June 21, 2007

Rebecca..

Good observation!!!, A similar debate is slowly germinating in another topic "Google in Africa" (not sure of the heading). For the same reason I say Africans will not benefit much in technology of the future, simply because they ignore it or are unwillingly to spend money in I.T.

I don't blame them though, if you look at the amount of revenue local companies have generated through IT and the pool of customers that use the net, its uncomparable. Even the TEAMS (fibre optics) initiative by the government might end up being used by foreign telco companies more than to the benefit of local enterprenures, why ? Because they don't prepare for it or invest in it.

Nationmedia is one of the few that have good websites; it promotes the Nation. The Standard website is not that bad, but a lot more improvement is needed there. Kenya Times is just laughable.

No info, we are Kenyan
written by aeichener , June 21, 2007

Lack of information on Kenyan websites, makes research ever so difficult. The sharing of information is still seen as a threat, with fear that the "enemy" might get the upper hand.

SIGH. Indeed.
As Al Kags wrote right here on the site in his Google article:

"I recently had a meeting with a government official with regard to accessing some of the records that they have, digitizing it at my own cost and sharing the digital data with them for them to develop its use by wider sharing it. Amazingly, his first reaction was "absolutely not." Why? Because it is not done in government. When we got over that, we found that there is a huge fear with regard to what the information will be used for."

Alexander

Thanks to Rebecca
written by aeichener , June 22, 2007

And one personal comment to Becky:

Harry Karanja, in his nice and rather readwhile (I coined the expression, remember me) blog http://startupkenya.blogspot.com,
wrote a nice article titled "ICT pros, living in a Matrix".

He argues for a better understanding between conventional media and geeks (oops, he uses the word "ICT pros". Rebecca does indeed a wonderful and diligent job in trying steadfastly to bridge this gap, and I wish to thank her for her devotion and diligence. Ahem.

Alexander

...
written by Gachinga Warima , June 23, 2007

I checked out the websites of Nakumatt and Uchumi and I do agree with you Rebecca that the companies certainly do need to improve their websites. Uchumi is better than Nakumatt's but still needs work. However, keep in mind that technology is fairly new in Kenya compared to Britain or here in the U.S. Thus you can't expect the same level of government or corporate commitment, as we see in the developed countries. Comparing Tesco to Nakumatt/Uchumi is like wondering why a 2 year old doesn't walk as steadily & fast as a grown man.

Another telling example
written by aeichener , June 26, 2007

Another telling observation: the Kenya Human Rights Commission (that's the private one, KHRC; the other one is called KNCHR) has for weeks now announced a major political event in Nairobi for the 26th of June: a "mock tribunal" on abortion. Those of us who are more used to American English will know the same as a "moot court".

Now, evidently, such an important event should gather major interest. But do you think that there would be even a single hint on the KHRC website? A press release? Or at least indication of time, location and programme? Something that would be self-understanding in every other part of the world?

No. Of course not. Why of course? Because it's Kenya, and Kenyans maintain the website. Once again, incompetence frolicks, and dances naked on the table.

But who is to be blamed for that sad and sorry state? It is the same picture in most places:

- The CEO? No, for the CEO's job is to direct and to represent, to exude "liidaaahsheep". He or she cannot actually be expected to look after such trifling details, that would be undignified.

- The public relations officer? No, of course not. Because PR work means accepting free beers from journalists, and occasionally hacking a press release into your mechanical typewriter (the modern workstation is in the bureau of the CEO, bought from donor money, and equipped with all latest fads; but he does not know how to operate it). A website, that is evidently IT stuff, something like ethernet, y'know?

- The IT geeks? Nope, they ride the hardware and fuck the software, but web design isn't their job description.

- The web designer? No! S/he was commissioned for the design job, was forced into making major after-the-fact unprepared alterations for two months, unpaid of course, and since then hasn't gotten any new orders from management.

- The program officer? Oh, c'mon, please! While she does know how to use a computer and can even write emails (she has been busily sending away her CV to all and sundry, ever hoping to finally get one of these peach & plum highly paid UN jobs, instead of her @%$&*! exploitation NGO post), she is more than overburdened with actually organizing and running the entire event itself.

- The donor? Yes, right! Finally we have found the culprit! It's all the donor's fault!! He should have provided money and (wo)manpower for the website update and a new website relaunch. KNCHR got such donor funds (from the Swiss embassy), so how in hell can we be expected to maintain a website without foreign help?!

Alexander

Its the norm.
written by mmnjug , June 27, 2007

That is Kenya for you. Businesses here think in a very archaic manner such that even when you call them at their offices, those who you meet do not have all the info or they have to refer you to others who are grotesquely incompetent! Its so unfair that its now kind of normal to have bad service as part of the high cost services and good! But due to Kenyans demand for good service goes up, they will be forced to either style up or close shop! Its a pity that even companies that have full IT departments still sruggle to have their sites updated in real time. But change is coming in tsunamisque way.

click to http://assidous.blogspot.com

The excuse of core business
written by Mbugua , July 10, 2007

I have lead a team that offered world class solutions to both Nakumatt and Uchumi, the main hinderance was the lack of internatal champions to run with the ideas and concepts.

Nakumatt is about to launch a financial product, would it not be grand if part of its 300 plus strong smart card user base could shop online and have the stuff delivered seeing that they already charge to deliver goods bought at the till?

Customer and Service
written by pndiangui , July 10, 2007

Well, at the heart of the problem is a weak business sense or weak understanding of the function of a website, by both the business managers and the IT managers.

If they could truly understand that adopting IT could drive their business in a visible and measurable way, they could have an incentive of investing in it.
The problem is that to beceome aware of these benefits, a deeper understanding of the business itself is first needed, even before jumping into IT toys. For example, take the cases of Uchumi and Nakumatt; proper understanding and use of IT would enable the management to grapple with many business problems/issues:
-Logistics management
-Customer shopping experience
-Low cost communication / advertising
-New business models and New Market segments - for example online customers or even franchised chains
-New products and services - for example billpay services for their card users.

To do this, they would need to look at the current underlying infrastracture as a whole: efficient logistics capabilities, communication channels, New Market segments or redefinition of their market segments that could be targeted from their current business plans.

From these insights then they might start seeing new perspectives, where technology enables them to realise their business needs or problems, and thus meet their corporate goals. They would either contribute to three most important bottom line things;

- Cut Costs, Increase Revenue or Improve Relationships (with employees, customers, general community)

Key to all these is the synergetic view of IT as an enabler, applied in tandem with changes of other organisational management processes, all aimed at enhancing growth in all facets.
Any simpler way of seeing IT only as fragmented parts - in form of fancy software and such - will not provide a burning incentive for management to invest in it.

Admin notice: Edited for legibility, clarity and sense.

missing the point
written by Mlevi , July 14, 2008

I think we are getting ahead of ourselves here, companies like Tecsco did not adopt web technology for the fun of it; they did it because it created new opportunities but mostly for the efficiency gains.

The reason most Kenyan website are brochure-ware is because there just isnt enough bandwidth in the country to do otherwise. To get a fast, efficient, content rich websites in Kenya one would host it outside the country. Bandwidth is miniscule, spotty and expansive that customer traffic would be very limited unless the target audience is not living in Kenya.

Given these issues I seriously question the need for the content rich website that go beyond brochure-ware given the cost and limited potential for return.

I payless for high speed internet service a month than my brother in Kenya does, I also get a magnitude of order more bandwidth than he does, this in a country where the most people live on less than a dollar a day. I tried reading my company email once from a Nairobi internet cafe and quit when it took over 20 minutes to render the first page.

The minster is not only being deceitful, deflective but criminally hypocritical by bashing Kenyan companies and their web sites. The ministers government is responsible for falling to bring high speed internet services to the masses.

Having a web site is just the first step
written by Peter Njenga , August 18, 2008

I have been learning the ways of the web and many sites in Kenya miss the entire point. Why have a slow loading flash site full of animations and distractions when your users do not have broadband connection?
As a web designer, I was shocked when a client told me she wanted a site like South Africa's http://www.sungoddess.co.za. This is a flash site that takes ages to load, despite it's design focus.
All in all, all webmasters and clients should work at building sites that focus entirely on the visitors - to help these users better accomplish their goals on your site.
Google says "Focus on the user and all else will follow." I cannot agree more.

car shipping
written by obuonde , September 12, 2008

Talking of Kenyan websites, I have also noted that they are not the best. Either they are too slow, or they contain stuff that is irrelevant. I think it is all to do with knowledge. Basically,kids should be taught computers in schools as part of the curriculum like they do in UK and other western countries. This way, they will grow up with the knowledge and help Kenya out of the dark ages...