My take
written by donde , March 06, 2008

First and foremost we should congratulate our leaders who despite strong opposition from either divide decided to accent to powersharing deal which has gone a long way to quell the tension which was building up.
The country is now on the course to healing and recovery although albeit with potholes here and there.This is also a time when true sons of Kenya be it a mp or an ordinary mwananchi can stand up to be counted by playing his/her own part towards quicker healing and recovery of our beloved country.
We stand to gain united rather than divided along ethnicity which to me is a seed planted by the politicians for their own selfish political gain.
Kenya should be for all Kenyans regardless of ethnosociopolitical affiliation and we as Kenyans should always strive to build a better Kenya than we found it.
The past injustices should be tackled as fast as possible and be seen as so . This constitution should be ammended to reflect the changing times and aspirations of Kenyan people and not as document of raw power where winner takes all ...

The Future
written by James Macharia , March 06, 2008

The first thing would be to recognize the reality that has always been there, which is we are not really one nation but a nation made up of 45 or so tribes or groupings. In essence though there are about 7 major tribes who between them account for 80% percent of our population and who are now in a dangerous competition with one another. You have the Luo, Luhya, Kalenjin on the one side and GEMA on the other with the Kamba being free agents. We must create a forum for people to address ethnic issues and grievances in a civilized manner.


2nd there are 4 institutions that need to be looked at very seriously and restructured effectively. The Judiciary needs to be independent as possible from the other 2 arms of govt. The ECK likewise. Critical are also the police and the army. The last 2 needs to be ethnically balanced and adequately funded.


3rd governance. This has to be addressed. I'm for economic devolution but proponents have to realize that for this to function, you need a pretty powerful centre. Otherwise the regions will just grow apart. Some will in invest wisely, some foolishly. The end game will be even greater inequality than our current system.

The CDF concept offers a unique opportunity for this to happen. We don't need to reinvent the wheel. The individual constituencies need to get more money and more responsibilities. That would be including building infrastructure (roads), schools, services like electricity and water and health centres.

The whole thing can work if CDF is run by a team of 5-10 well paid experts. 10 people would be additionally employed for the day to day running of the whole operation. The MP plays the role of the head of the committee and is accountable to the people. For the money to be released the board has to be constituted in a way that is above reproach. That would be the work of the central authority.


4th we have to decentralize. We can do that by creating about 14 provinces. RV,Eastern and North Eastern need to be subdivided into smaller units. The provincial capitals will be elevated to city status and govt. funds will be used to provide a minimum level of infrastructure. Eg. All this cities needs to have a world class hospital, stadium, airport etc. The local authorities system needs to be improved seriously to deliver effective service. The govt. as a huge employer needs to move some of its operations from Nairobi and bring them down to this new cities.

All this needs to be held together by an effective road network. A very good modern railway network would do wonders for us. The cities need to advertise themselves to the global world in order to lock investments. Same goes for the constituencies. The govt. needs to wake up and acquire all the urls related to Kenya. eg. Kenya.com, Nairobi.com etc.

Lastly we need to agree either on the parliamentary system of governance or the presidential. A parliamentary system of govt. as well as the CDF needs a thorough review, in order to create equal representation. I personally prefer the presidential system because IMO, it will get us from A to B much faster. A hybrid system will not work effectively IMO.

bitter future
written by observer , March 06, 2008

4th we have to decentralize. We can do that by creating about 14 provinces. RV, Eastern and North Eastern need to be subdivided into smaller units, All this cities needs to have a world class hospital, stadium, airport etc

As far as bitter herbs and tastes go, the bitter truth is that we already have a government that spends 24% of its budget on administration. Where would the money to fund such lofty goals come from? This for a country the size of Texas and whose major exports are less than what the New York Yankees pay their players in year?

The Structures like these would push federal spending to over 50%, given the need for our leaders to driven in motorcades and have palatial residences. Most of these provinces are too poor to fund these structures themselves and would expect the money to come from the treasury in Nairobi, you know that magical place where money grows on trees.

We already act like money appears miraculously in the treasury and the issue is how we should spend it, We rarely if ever, talk about how it gets there or how to get more in.

The most bitter herb we as nation have to swallow is the acceptance that there is no discernable correlation between the number of ministers and senior civil servants from your tribe and the economic and social well being of your tribe.

Media Hype
written by Kim G , March 06, 2008

Has anyone else noticed how the Kenyan media is hyping up the Peace Deal. I'm not saying that I dont support it but its interesting how the Peace Deal is being potrayed as the harbinger of heaven on earth. Kind of reminds me of Kenya Times in the Nyayo Era.

...
written by Keguro , March 06, 2008

A few responses:

1. I would feel much happier about our so-called leaders if they had responded to the on-the-ground violence when it first happened instead of waiting for international mediators, and actually being bullied by international pressure. What does it say about them that we can die and that's acceptable, but let the U.S. or the UN threaten sanctions and action happens?

2. The blind claim that the past two months will quickly recede into the past is belied by the fact of funerals, dead bodies, burned homes, IDP camps, and a looming food shortage. The very surface of our country is bleeding and scarred. We cannot forget, even when promised new roads. Infrastructure will not "fix" the emotional and psychic toll of the last few months.

3. Let us not deceive ourselves that the text messages, accusations and counter-accusations have stopped. Now, we are "discovering" who was "really behind" what happened. Will we be able to separate fact from rumor? What will be the costs of such discovery?

4. I find the claim that "Kenyans should be Kenyans" suspect and willfully blind to recent history. Were we not being Kenyans when we hacked each other to death? We need to stop relying on the assumption that we know what "being Kenyan" means and how it functions. As a close friend puts it, we need to be more self-conscious about what it means to create and inhabit Kenyan identity. Saying we are "one people" does not make it so.

5. Finally, I want to emphasize that I have no investment in being negative or pessimistic. I want to highlight that we are *not* in a good place, that we need to face an unpredictable and troubling future, and that we risk mystifying the difficulties ahead at our own peril.

Lord Help Us
written by observer , March 06, 2008

or we burry our heads like most GEMA people do (we can live anywhere crap... (but only by tents or by renting houses), Its unfortunate that people must die before others see sense.

What does federalism have to do with here people choose to live and work?

Is the bitter truth that the universal constitutional rights to freedom of association, freedom of movement and right to own property should be abandoned in Kenya because GEMA folks might own or live in areas where they are not considered native to?

May be thats the kind of Kenya we want to be an 18th century country in the 21st century. The rest of Kenya will take bitter leaves is to vomit out GEMA from their midst.

Crisis Averted but What about
written by Simba , March 06, 2008

While I am grateful that the violence has finally stopped and there is some semblance of normalcy returning to our country, I have to agree with the notion that the Kibaki-Odinga agreement is being overhyped. First of all, it brings us back to 2002 after NARC won. Essentially, by signing this agreement both Kibaki and Odinga are admitting that the last 5 years were a complete waste of time. All that politicking, all that referendum bullshit, all for nothing. We are now back to square one. The hope is that they dont screw it up this time.

It doesn't fail to amuse me, though, that the focus is still political. It is all about doling out ministerial seats and keeping ones cronies happy. What about the humanitarian aspect? Thousands were killed and hundeds of thousands were displaced and the nation must focus on that. We owe it to the displaced to resettle them quickly and without further ado. We owe it to the dead, on both sides of the political divide, to investigate fully their deaths and bring their perpetrators to justice. Justice delayed, like the saying goes, is justice denied. And we all know that politicians were involved in the planning of the brutality, and by God if those politicians are not brought to justice the culture of impunity in our country will grow into a much more dangerous cancer.

Also, what about the economy? What is the government doing about the thousands upon thousands of unemployed youth? You think they are just going to sit around and wait for a job after realizing that all this bullying is making them money. Hell no. And while Kibaki and Raila were f-ing this country over due to their stubborness, our economy is in virtual ruins. The government had better do something about tourism and quick. My suggestion: double the budget for overseas marketing for the next 5 months, fix roads in major tourist areas, cut the visitor visa fees for foreign tourists for the next 6 months and increase security personnel in key tourist areas and pray hard. Additionally, the government needs to double the efforts to clear up the hold up at the port in Mombasa, ensure that the highways are safe for travel to all, and ensure that the railway is back in operation.

I just hope someone is thinking about all these things. Its not quite time to pop the Tuskers yet, our nation is still in a mess and the kazi has yet to indelea.

re: bitter future
written by James Macharia , March 06, 2008

4th we have to decentralize. We can do that by creating about 14 provinces. RV, Eastern and North Eastern need to be subdivided into smaller units, All this cities needs to have a world class hospital, stadium, airport etc

As far as bitter herbs and tastes go, the bitter truth is that we already have a government that spends 24% of its budget on administration. Where would the money to fund such lofty goals come from? This for a country the size of Texas and whose major exports are less than what the New York Yankees pay their players in year?

The Structures like these would push federal spending to over 50%, given the need for our leaders to driven in motorcades and have palatial residences. Most of these provinces are too poor to fund these structures themselves and would expect the money to come from the treasury in Nairobi, you know that magical place where money grows on trees.

We already act like money appears miraculously in the treasury and the issue is how we should spend it, We rarely if ever, talk about how it gets there or how to get more in.

The most bitter herb we as nation have to swallow is the acceptance that there is no discernable correlation between the number of ministers and senior civil servants from your tribe and the economic and social well being of your tribe.

I did read that in the papers and was quite shocked. What you ask is fair enough but at the same time its not that Utopian or unachievable. You have to understand that the country is to some extent structured that way. The only thing thats a miss is the high concentration of industry and other employers in Nairobi.

Sometimes though, you have to set goals and find means and strategies of how to get there. A decentralized country is more efficient than the highly centralized we have. The Big question is not where are the funds going to come from but what do we do so that our economy creates more jobs.

There are a couple of things that have not been explored to their full potential. For example building up a professional sports industry. This is no small thing, as there are whole cities that are mainly supported by their sports teams. A working sports industry could further create plenty of jobs.
Nairobi needs to be relieved of all the pressure its taking. If we had some more centres then we'd also reduce the traffic problem which eats up 18 billion shillings every year.

Lastly, even with the meagre earnings we earn as a country, there's no question that with a bit more efficiency and less corruption as well as a few visionaries, we'd be much further than where we stand now.

Just an example the new Muthurwa market in Nairobi would generate at the modest sum of 25 shillings per hawker per day, as opposed to the 100 shillings they are asking for, 52.8 million shillings per year. Your guess is as good as mine as to how much of that money will flow back into the infrastructure and services. The market will be coupled up with a bus terminus which should also not be used free of charge. That will also generate extra revenue. If they follow the concept through, they'll probably need 4 more such termini. It's obvious that our local authorities present a huge black whole where a lot of shillings disappear. How can we reform them in order to make them work.

Also don't forget that a city with a large population can sustain itself quite well. You also forget what I wrote that a town, city or region has to be in a position to market itself nowadays and lock investments.

I think there are a lot of development not being done in our country because people are not asking this questions and seeking to get the right answers. Transparency and accountability used to be a cliche in the 90s but with the advance of technology, there are instruments of turning this empty slogans into reality.

re: Media Hype
written by James Macharia , March 06, 2008

Has anyone else noticed how the Kenyan media is hyping up the Peace Deal. I'm not saying that I dont support it but its interesting how the Peace Deal is being potrayed as the harbinger of heaven on earth. Kind of reminds me of Kenya Times in the Nyayo Era.

I have and it's quite disgusting. Not to forget the elevation of Kofi Anna to some god-like figure. The critical questions and analysis are not being made.

hope?
written by observer , March 06, 2008

We have, at present, a national narrative that suffers at the formal and material level. It is both marked by ellipses and half-finished sentences and simultaneously defaced by mold. It has always been unsatisfactory, and this time we cant simply banish it to the attic. The attic was destroyed in the fires.

Dude, am a big fan of your work, I think you nailed it. In my opinion, we are stuck in an tribal mindset/narrative that has run its cause. We are trying to fit a square peg in a round hole, basically trying to put 10 gallons of shit in a 5 gallon bucket. What we end up is with shit on us and all over the floor.

Given that the attic has burned down and our hiding place has left us bare and Naked how do we deal with what confronts us? If South Africans were able to have a go at crafting a cohesive though at times shaky national narrative, maybe we too in Kenya might have a chance. We may not have a mandelaesk type personality but maybe like Obama said, we are the change that we have been waiting for.
We should stand and be counted in the creation of a forward looking 21st century Kenya.

14 th provinces
written by Lord , March 06, 2008

Not here idiot, bye! Eds.

re: Valley of the Ashes
written by a guest , March 06, 2008

The very surface of our country is bleeding and scarred. We cannot forget, even when promised new roads. Infrastructure will not "fix" the emotional and psychic toll of the last few months.

Yes, that is indeed very saddening. Other writers have here written about the baggage of mistrust and suspicion that we (at least many of us) will have to carry for long after these days. Many have had reasons to re-examine and to change (almost invariably to the worse and worst) their perception of their next, their neighbours, their work colleagues, their "friends".

Such experience leaves one scarred, at least calloused.

I too could relate about the friend whom I formerly highly esteemed as a leftist, criticial thinker and feminist, and whom I now have seen without attire as just one more hailing Raila brownshirt (this alludes to a famous picture of the Fhrer from the lakeside inspecting an SA or whatever honour guard, the hooligans wearing indeed brown shirts), and a - black - racist on top it. All her former ethical and political credentials evaporated quickly.
Or you may think about the assistant professor of performance studies in Gilead who - the intellectuality and queerness was only ever so skin-deep - very quickly reduced himself to one more reality-blind cheerer and fanner of ethnic hatred, eyes wide shut. The inner savage quickly came through the veneer, and politicized family ties (more important to most Kenyans anyhow than political convictions, morals or sexual identities) demanded their heavy toll. The Sopranos, uh?

A.

14 provinces (states)
written by James Macharia , March 06, 2008

Bile

I'm not for a federal system at all. If you noticed, I restricted myself to an economic devolution based on the CDF concept.

This by passes the Jimbo level and gets to the grassroots. A federal system of govt. apart from the annoying side effects in the Kenyan context of people having to go back to their ancestral homes is a bureaucratic monster. It brings with it's own legislature to boot.

With the bomas draft, you have another legislative function at the district level. Then you have the classic question of how to make laws and getting them passed by the state legislature then the national legislature. How do you ensure that with so many law makers that no conflicting laws emerge? IMHO this kind of government would only grind us to a halt. Plus a lot of politicians are being minted to run the whole show.

If you go through the CDF, you can leave the running to professionals and leave the law making entirely to the national legislature in Nairobi. I find if you turn over the running of the show to professionals, you'll get better results.

The 2nd point I made was decentralization, which has nothing to do with federalism.

We encourage all writers to ignore and report bigots. This country can achieve no solutions to its problems if as a collective we coddle those preaching division and hatred. Eds

Source of Money?
written by observer , March 06, 2008

A decentralized country is more efficient than the highly centralized we have. The Big question is not where are the funds going to come from but what do we do so that our economy creates more jobs.

I am a strong proponent of a federal system however; I question the motives and agendas of most of the proponents of such a system. Just because we in principle support federalism does not mean it means the same thing to all of us.

What is more important reducing income disparity or the number of people that live bellow the poverty line?

A federal system will not change regional income distribution in Kenya but will it will change the number of folks that live bellow the poverty level country wide. Given the arguments given behind the very the strong anti GEMA sentiments I have witnessed; I am of the opinion that that income disparity is more important to most Kenyans than dropping the number of folks that live bellow the poverty line. Federalism is not going to change income disparity and might actually have the opposite effect since regional Overall Labor Efficiency is only going to increase as Kenya adopts Information Technology. Given that agriculture contributes 25% to GDP and employs 75% of the labor force while services contribute over 55% and employs a much smaller segment of the labor force look for the disparity to increase significantly. The areas that are already ahead are best poisoned to take advantage of the challenges of the 21st century. (Just look at what this has done to the labor market in the United States).

re: Source of Money?
written by daniel.waweru , March 06, 2008

Federalism is not going to change income disparity and might actually have the opposite effect since regional Overall Labor Efficiency is only going to increase as Kenya adopts Information Technology. Given that agriculture contributes 25% to GDP and employs 75% of the labor force while services contribute over 55% and employs a much smaller segment of the labor force look for the disparity to increase significantly. The areas that are already ahead are best poisoned to take advantage of the challenges of the 21st century. (Just look at what this has done to the labor market in the United States).

Observer,

That's an interesting argument. Could I ask you to elaborate a little?

In English
written by observer , March 06, 2008

@Daniel,

I believe that Stephen has said in English what I was getting at, which is the arguments that drive the federalism debate are driven more by the need to reduce the income gap between rich and poor regions of Kenya, as opposed to reducing the number of poor people in the country. I believe that its more important to reduce the number of poor people in the country than to worry about how many rich pole there are in the country.

Agriculture in Kenya is to me like Manufacturing in the united sates; it was responsible for creating much of the middle class. Federalism may increase investment in agriculture at the local level and raise many poor people out of poverty basic poverty in Kenya. However, Agriculture like manufacturing in the US, globalization is and will kill the benefits it brought. Those areas that have the higher rates of literacy and resources will develop at a much faster rate than those areas where people are coming out of basic poverty. Further widening the wealth distribution gap even though there will be fewer poor people in Kenya. This is especially poignant once you think of the fact most of the GDP in Kenya is not created in Agriculture. Federalism is not and will never be the means by which all regions in the country will have similar opportunities and prosperity.

Wesh
written by Stephen Wanyama , March 06, 2008

We have discussed this here before. The ODM have sold the idea of federalism so well because they start from the premise that the current state of things is such that the poorest province in Kenya is Central Province but that this province then receives the greatest inflows from the Exchequer.

Once it is clear that this is nonsense, it then follows that the better off provinces in Kenya are indeed the ones driving the economy, they are the ones that are already best developed and in any circumstances but the most absurd altruism, they are the ones that will attract all the investment, they have the better facilities, the better trained workforce, the greater capital and entrepreneurial bent. Therefore, federation only means that they give out less, that they can concentrate more on themselves. Even in a competition for business, for investments and for tourists, these regions would have a massive head-start over any rivals. You only need to consider the effects of the expulsions from the Rift Valley and Western Kenya, there is a YouTube video with Kisumu East MP Shakeel Shabbir that underlines these effects very clearly.

Another money question. We are asking now that one province fund the building of a sports stadium in another for example? Or that the citizens of the wealthier provinces take on their backs greater taxes so as to build factories in say Nyanza, right? Well, if these two sides are enemies, if for example we are cheering on the ODM as they expel Kikuyu and Kisii folk from the Rift Valley Province, who then will finance business there?

Nowhere on earth has inequality been reduced by federalism! Whoever said above that federalism equals prosperity was only joking.

poleni
written by Stephen Wanyama , March 06, 2008

Closing inequalities anywhere can only be done in two ways. Either by robbing the better off, or by persuading the better off that they should give up a lot to improve the lives of those less fortunate.

Now, it is absolutely impossible to achieve the peaceful solution while flying the banner of the GEMA are our enemy. Consider now that the GEMA are 30% of the population and you can see why the likes of Dominic Kipkorir, Najib Balala, Mwangaza and Aketch find themselves in a cul-de-sac where the only way they can continue their case is by asking for the break-up of Kenya.

As we have argued here since the beginning of time, the only solution to Kenya's problems will be an increase in enterprise and productivity in the less well-off areas. Wealthy Bukusu folk, wealthy Luo folk, instead of building 100m homes in Karen would do well to invest in industries in their home districts, employ people, make their regions more productive, innovate and provide capital. I mean seriously instead of complaining about Equity, why don't kina Raila start a bank? You need nothing more than $2 million! Why was the Kisumu Molasses Plant not used as intended, to promote ownership and a shareholder culture among the people of Luo Nyanza? Where is the capital they put in?

Decentralization
written by James Macharia , March 07, 2008

I've not argued for a federal system of government, which is essentially a house within a house concept. The structures of Government are multiplied, as in our case with currently 8 provinces, 8 fold. That means 9 Executives, 9 legislative bodies etc.

Also what people don't seem to understand is that such a system needs an especially strong centre to hold everything together and make sure that the regions don't grow completely apart. I believe it was Paul Kimani n another topic who put it best with an illustration from the Bible about the guy who goes on a trip and gives his 3 servants some money. 2 invest wisely, one doesn't invest at all.

Basically there in lies the danger of federalism. One region will invest wisely and another will squander their money away.At the end of a time period, the differences between the two regions will be even greater than under our current system of Government.

It's also important to note that the unitary system of government we have also includes a high amount of devolution. When the Ministry of Public Works gets its budget allocation, he then goes forth to allocate some money for roads in Western, in Central, In Nyanza etc.

I do however think we can achieve development faster if we go through the CDF system I proposed before. This are not many governments that you'll have but a small executive distributing funds. Only the MP will is part of the Legislature. What that would achieve would be a more responsive local government. The other thing would be to look seriously at what is now called local govt. and look for ways of making this instrument start to work.

Decentralization is not the same as federalism but can be quite easily achieved within the system of Government we have. In fact most elements are already in place. And yes Wanyama, the richer regions would have to fund the poorer ones in order for this to work. But the end game is a more evenly distributed population. A more evenly distributed population will enable us to have a more equal representation. And that will eventually lead to a more equal distribution of resources.

Nairobi for example was never planned accommodate the 3 Million people living in it today and no one has much bothered to keep on planning the city, so as to keep apace with the population explosion. The problem of this was shown during the recent mayhem we had. About half of Nairobis population lives in the slums and apparently they are a desperate people with little to lose. What do we learn from this? The less slums we have the better. Instead of building all our factories in Nairobi, why don't we build some in Nakuru, Kakamega, Nyeri and Garissa. That will stop all this people flooding Nairobi.They'll be closer to home and the families will have better quality time. On top of that, someone from Siaya looking for some adventure might wish to go and work in Machakos for a while. That will be good for the farmer there as he can supplement his income by renting out some space.

Here is a map of Kenya which illustrates my point. Just look at the size of North Eastern Province.
It has a population of about 1.3 million. Neighbouring Eastern province which is about the same size has geographically has population of about 5.3 million. Then compare that with Nairobi which has a population of about 2.8 million.
Source

re: poleni
written by manta ray , March 07, 2008

Closing inequalities anywhere can only be done in two ways. Either by robbing the better off, or by persuading the better off that they should give up a lot to improve the lives of those less fortunate.

Now, it is absolutely impossible to achieve the peaceful solution while flying the banner of the GEMA are our enemy. Consider now that the GEMA are 30% of the population and you can see why the likes of Dominic Kipkorir, Najib Balala, Mwangaza and Aketch find themselves in a cul-de-sac where the only way they can continue their case is by asking for the break-up of Kenya.

As we have argued here since the beginning of time, the only solution to Kenya's problems will be an increase in enterprise and productivity in the less well-off areas. Wealthy Bukusu folk, wealthy Luo folk, instead of building 100m homes in Karen would do well to invest in industries in their home districts, employ people, make their regions more productive, innovate and provide capital. I mean seriously instead of complaining about Equity, why don't kina Raila start a bank? You need nothing more than $2 million! Why was the Kisumu Molasses Plant not used as intended, to promote ownership and a shareholder culture among the people of Luo Nyanza? Where is the capital they put in?

When Raila and Ruto speak of Kenya being unequal, and that their and ODM's mission is to correct that, what do they mean? Does they mean that Nyanza, for example, should be equal in wealth to Central or Coast? If in fact there are mechanisms that will make Nyanza catch up, does that not mean that the same factors will also apply to Central, which will consequently get richer? In any case, can Nyanza ever catch up? What is catching up? Having the same number of millionaires? or elite schools? or miles of roads? Can Tennessee ever catch up with New York state or California? What will happen if, after 10 years, Ruto has not realized his equality project? Will he once again unleash the Kalenjin warriors?
These guys are once again selling snake oil palliatives to a gullible populace and the Kenyan media, as ever, is lapping it up.

...
written by manta ray , March 07, 2008

Stephen Wanyama asks:

Why was the Kisumu Molasses Plant not used as intended, to promote ownership and a shareholder culture among the people of Luo Nyanza? Where is the capital they put in?

Ask Oburu. Apparently, the money they collected in 1995 - 97 under the aegis of Kisumu Development Trust to ostensibly buy the molasses plant is "still in the Bank and is safe", or so he says, to this day. Question is: safe doing what? These gangsters actually used the money, 570 million to be exact, to campaign in the 1997 General Election, and that is where Moi found the leverage to, through Mark Too, get Raila by the handful(bunchful?), squeeze hard, and remind him that he had only two, not five, and so were we then treated to the Kopareson saga.

Location, location, location
written by aliosema , March 07, 2008

James Macharia says

Instead of building all our factories in Nairobi, why don't we build some in Nakuru, Kakamega, Nyeri and Garissa. That will stop all this people flooding Nairobi.They'll be closer to home and the families will have better quality time.

James as the adage goes...the key to a successful business is location, location, location. The concept of forcing businesses to relocate on an equitable basis may sound good possible in theory but in practice investors are not interested in equity they are interested in profits... they will locate where they can produce quality goods and deliver them to markets on time; they will locate where they can find skilled labour and where they can attract skilled management to run their businesses. Some parts of the country are just not attractive to investors at this time and will need to do alot more before they can get investors to move. This kind of simplistic argument is what the ODM are peddling to their followers...this sounds like the blame game all over again. There are enough answers to the question -why didnt the British build Nairobi in Garissa???? Maybe we need to think of another way of solving this problem.

Location, location, location
written by James Macharia , March 07, 2008

There are enough answers to the question -why didnt the British build Nairobi in Garissa???? Maybe we need to think of another way of solving this problem.

If you read my initial argument, I coupled my argument with the
availability of very good connectivity. The government has an array of weapons in making some areas more attractive. Like better tax breaks in some locations. The other is advertising. It is no secret that in any given country some places are cheaper to live than in others. Accessibility to information will make it easier for human resources to move around.

We must realize that creating employment is a top priority even at the expense of some revenue. Having a lot of frustrated young men roaming the streets is not healthy for our women especially.The rape rates during this conflict period have been staggering and we should be ashamed of ourselves as the collective men of this country. The less (better, NO) breakdown of social order we have from now on , the better.

We must also realize that packing 1.5 million in Kibera, Mathare and similar informal settlements like sardines poses a huge risk to all of us living in the City. If Kibera, Mathare and the rest were orderly low income estates then the police would have a much easier time containing the situation.

The Brits didn't build Nairobi in Garisa, but we don't have to stop where the mighty British empire left us in 1963. I'm sure even they didn't expect us to hold on to Nairobi like some sort of Talisman forever.

You'd be surprised that North Eastern Province is the part of the country with the fastest population growth rate and the Americans put up a world class 4th international airport in Wajir. As a result that town has become some sort of boom town.
The British favour centralization, just look at the size of London. I much prefer the German decentralized system with a myriad of small self sustaining towns with populations of about 300k. I lived there a while and there's a certain joy from town A to town B and finding the same level of infrastructure available. On top of that, all towns don't need to do the same thing. One can diversify the product.
What I'm saying at the end of the day is not that outlandish. We've always had provincial capitals. I'm just saying they should more. The Government has also been moving in that direction I'm moving. Notre the move to upgrade Mombasa and Kisumu to cities as well as the moves the government made to get Kisumu the millennium city status.
All efforts to destroy it by some short sighted and overly emotional individuals notwithstanding.

re: re: poleni
written by James Macharia , March 07, 2008

When Raila and Ruto speak of Kenya being unequal, and that their and ODM's mission is to correct that, what do they mean? Does they mean that Nyanza....

I forgot to say in my previous post what my drive is not about equality of all regions or town but establishment of a minimum that each city or region needs to fulfil. The work of the government is then to establish that this bare minimum is met. How do you establish that, through statistics.

If for example the government established that every 50 000 people need a health clinic, then the aim would be to ensure that this goal is met. That doesn't mean that there won't be areas where a health clinic serves 5000 people. The aim is not to transform Kenya into a series of Ujamaa villages ala Julius Nyerere (R.I.P). That is also the guiding principle of social capitalism. It allows some to be as insanely rich as their effort allows them to be but for the rest to be captured by a safety net.

The problem with ODM brigade is that they have good sounding ideas on paper but they've not been thought through till the end and the vast majority our population as literate as it is is not yet sophisticated enough to discern this things.

Finally, every project you make is at the end of the day an investment. The government doesn't have to put up every other building. It can attract investors to do some of this things. It can convince a group of investors that putting up a shs. 20 billion 60 000 capacity stadium in Garissa will be a worthwhile venture.

Incidentally that CDF site, in which I provided the link above is how we need to be conducting our public affairs. Sure they need to refine it a bit like adding much more photographic data but it's in the right direction.

If you click on the map on a province, you eventually get to the link of the constituencies. There you can see how each given constituency utilized their funds. A lot of cash seems to have gone into schools and dispensaries. A friend asked the reasonable question of, if you build so many schools and dispensaries with the money, who's going to pay the teachers and the doctors?

It's telling that Nairobi City Council doesn't seem to have a location on the net. Here's something interesting.Why does the council need to employ 21 000 or 15 00 people? I'm no expert but I reckon that they don't need more than 3000 people max, and I've included their askaris.

You Misunderstood
written by Aliosema , March 08, 2008

The Brits didn't build Nairobi in Garisa, but we don't have to stop where the mighty British empire left us in 1963. I'm sure even they didn't expect us to hold on to Nairobi like some sort of Talisman forever.

You missed the point. I was pointing to the importance of a location in attracting investors. Nairobi was chosen as a location because it was well endowed. It has continued to attract investors because it was well endowed not because the mighty BE left it to us in 1963. However I agree with you that we should have done much more to move forward and we had started to do so (Millenium City) before we were derailed by election 2007. Just so that you understand my point, what I was objecting to is your statement:

Instead of building all our factories in Nairobi, why don't we build some in Nakuru, Kakamega, Nyeri and Garissa. That will stop all this people flooding Nairobi

Factories are not OURS and WE can therefore not decide where to build them. However if WE wish to attract investors to our towns, WE will need to work harder to make OUR locations more attractive. Locations like Eldoret and Kisumu may be difficult to market to investors for some to come. If I was an investor I would wait to see what the outcome of this delicate political settlement is before heading for what has now been captioned Helldoret. If mass action (read burn tyres, buildings, loot, evict) is the solution to every crisis (note that the last rally was just called of last week) then I would wait before taking any investment risks.

Before you said ouf!!!
written by Wuod Aketch , March 09, 2008

Wacheni economics ya peni mbili. The real economists are those below.

Nakumatt to invest Sh470m in Nyanza : http://www.eastandard.net/news/?id=1143982976

Supermarket giant, Nakumatt Holdings will spend Sh470 million for expansion in Western Kenya this year.

Operations Director, Mr Thiaragarajan Ramamurthy, says the firm would construct more outlets in the region.

Speaking in Kisumu, yesterday, Ramamurthy said construction of an outlet in Kakamega at a cost of Sh170 million is underway.

"Nakumatt plans to invest a further Sh300 million in strategic stores upgrade and related expansion works in the larger Nyanza region," he explained.

He said another outlet would be opened in Eldoret.

Ramamurthy was speaking at Nakumatt Mega City Hypermarket during the launch of Smart Safari shopping promotion product.

Reducing visual pollution
written by Wuod Aketch , March 09, 2008

What should be avoided now is the mushrooming of polyethylene covered kibandas (kiosks) like those found around city stadium and east of the capital Nairobi. These business structures are eyesores. The architects from Nairobi University (in form of projects for students) should also come up with new shop designs that chnage the physiognomy of the trading centers that we are used to seeing on our way to the country side. Safaricom, Celtel, Kimbo should not be allowed anymore to put up those big signs and paintings on shops. Those ads stain the beautiful countryside.
Since most shopping centers were burnt down especially many in the rift valley, these simple ways of ridding the country side of visual pollution is easily implementable.

Kenya\'s has a chance to take
written by bee , March 10, 2008

You missed the point. I was pointing to the importance of a location in attracting investors.

Instead of building all our factories in Nairobi, why don't we build some in Nakuru, Kakamega, Nyeri and Garissa. That will stop all this people flooding Nairobi

Attracting investors.
Yes. A good starting poing would be considreing the strong points of each area.
For one I suggest the use of L. Victoria in irrigation and large scale farming. More crops for export, both locally to other regions within Kenya and internationally.

I suggest looking as well into Kisii and it's fertile lands.

Mauritius makes rum and has a thriving economy based on sugar cane and rum export.

My dear Mombasa has munazi, anyone interested in exploring that for exportation as an alternative, Kenyan produce?

All these areas can then be industrialized by packaging and processing agricultural products. Kenylon style. These can then be sold in the shops that Nakumatt is planning to set up.

I predict that Nakumatt has already began to look at franchises in the region, more markets for Kenyan goods.

There is not need to move industries, rather it is a matter of private business creating wealth and employment.

Mombasa, Eldoret, Kisumu and Nairobi have airports if it is a matter of transportation.

The other area that has been negelected is the railway system which could ferry heavy products instead of harming our roads. As far as I know the railroad covers all major towns.

It is not impossible at all to decentralise Nairobi, while we are in the spirit of decentralisation.

Finally a word of caution, tourism brings quick money but it also provides quick loss. Kenya has survived through thick and thin because of industry. We need to focus there. And industrialising agriculture is putting two things Kenyans are good at.

In the words of my friend, I quote:

Factories are not OURS and WE can therefore not decide where to build them. However if WE wish to attract investors to our towns, WE will need to work harder to make OUR locations more attractive.

re: You Misunderstood
written by James Macharia , March 10, 2008

You missed the point. I was pointing to the importance of a location in attracting investors. Nairobi was chosen as a location because it was well endowed. It has continued to attract investors because it was well endowed not because the mighty BE left it to us in 1963. However I agree with you that we should have done much more to move forward and we had started to do so (Millenium City) before we were derailed by election 2007. Just so that you understand my point, what I was objecting to is your statement:
Instead of building all our factories in Nairobi, why don't we build some in Nakuru, Kakamega, Nyeri and Garissa. That will stop all this people flooding Nairobi

Nairobi is well endowed, the place of many waters but it can't be he only place that is thus endowed. The British actually built a railway line that has three major points. Mombasa, also very well endowed, I might add, Nairobi and Kisumu.

The fact that Nairobi became such a strong centre has to do with location of course including its proximity to food supplying regions in central and RV but the British's own preference for this form of structure.

I still maintain though, that if the infrastructure in other towns is improved, and a good marketing plan is followed, then they'll also show that they have some advantages over Nairobi.

Factories are not OURS and WE can therefore not decide where to build them. However if WE wish to attract investors to our towns, WE will need to work harder to make OUR locations more attractive. Locations like Eldoret and Kisumu may be difficult to market to investors for some to come. If I was an investor I would wait to see what the outcome of this delicate political settlement is before heading for what has now been captioned Helldoret. If mass action (read burn tyres, buildings, loot, evict) is the solution to every crisis (note that the last rally was just called of last week) then I would wait before taking any investment risks.

Why can't the factories be ours? Instead of politicians hoarding all that cash and storing it in Switzerland, so that they quiver every time foreign powers say they'll freeze their assets, why can't they invest in a factory in Kenya instead? The most that can happen, is the factory being burnt by rowdy youths.

Incidentally speaking of Helldoret, with an international airport, a public university, and athletes investing their hard earned cash there, the future looked pretty bright. But then again the prospect of losing ones investment every 5 years i not the best advertisement.